Danger Comes From Within
by Anthony1
Summary: Sixth story in my series. Everyone has their demons. Whether they’re real or simply in our head they exist. But what if you were to actually be confronted by those demons? Would you stand up to it or would you coward away from it?
1. Set Free

Hey there everyone, it's been a while. I've finally been able to have the first chapter to the next part of my series on It would've been out sooner but unfortunately I was one of the people who couldn't download their stories for sometime. Just so you know the chapters that will be in this story are some that I really wanted to do and enjoyed working on them. Hopefully that can be seen when you read them. Anyways, I'm not going to waste anymore of your time so go ahead and read away. As for the disclaimer, I don't own digimon.

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Danger Comes  
From Within

_Freedom is one of the deepest and noblest aspirations of the human spirit.  
__Ronald Reagan (1911 - 2004)_

Chapter 1:  
Set Free

It was a lovely night as the people of Kyoto did their thing. Whether it was spending a quiet moment with their family or just having a night on the town, it didn't matter. In one case there was one particular couple who were enjoying one another's company. "That was a good movie wasn't it?" asked the man as he and his female companion walked down the street.

"How would you know?" retorted the girl. As they walked she began to lean closer to him and placed her head against his arm that she was holding as she sighed in content. "You were spending most of the movie kissing me."

"Hey now, you weren't complaining while it was happening. In fact, I think you were even encouraging me to continue." That instantly stopped the girl from making any type of retort as she immediately started to blush quite heavily. "It really doesn't matter if the movie was actually good or not. What does matter is that I was able to share it with you, Hikari."

Indeed the girl was none other than Hikari as she enjoyed the date that she was having with Daisuke. For the past few weeks the two of them had been enjoying themselves as they continued with the early stages of their relationship. So far everything was running smoothly and it seemed as though nothing could go wrong.

Unfortunately it appeared as if the fates were against them as the sound of women screaming near by. Almost as if acting on instinct, Daisuke headed off to where the screams came from, leaving a bewildered and somewhat hurt Hikari behind. Hurrying as fast as her feet would allow, Hikari ran after her date which was proving difficult seeing as how he was much faster than she could ever be.

When she finally caught up to him he had already saved the women from their tormentors who apparently were just a couple of thugs who attempted to steal some money. It looked as though he took care of the situation without going all vamp as there was no sign of the women knowing about it as they were continuously thanking him for saving them. Another thing that Hikari notice was that while the women were thanking him they were also trying to flirt with him.

"Oh my God, thank you for saving us mister." the bleach blonde woman said for the umpteenth time. "Is their anyway that my friend and I can do to repay you?" Ever so slowly the girl began to trace a hand across Daisuke's chest. Following her friend's example the red haired woman lightly stroked her hands up and down his arm. "Just say the word and the two of us will give you a reward that you won't soon forget. What do you say to that?"

Apparently Daisuke had yet to realize that Hikari was there as he hadn't acknowledged her presence what so ever. Becoming curious she hid herself so that she could hear how Daisuke would respond to the women's open invitation. _"I know that what I'm doing is a sneaky thing to do but I can't help myself."_

Daisuke allowed the women to continue their acts for a while before he spoke up. "I'm sorry ladies." Kindly he removed their arms from his body. "As much as I wish to take you up on your offer I have to decline."

"Come on hero." spoke the red head. "Are you honestly going to pass up on the opportunity of being with the both of us even if you did earn it?" By the sound of her voice it was obvious that the woman was shock by her savior's response and it looked as though her bleach blonde friend was having the same thoughts as well.

"I'm afraid so. A reward wasn't what I was looking for when I came to your rescue. I did it because it was the right thing to do." informed Daisuke.

"Oh, I understand now. You already have yourself a girl don't you?" the bleach blonde woman exclaimed as if that was the reason for his refusal.

"Look, there is a reason why I'm not going to take you up on your offer and it's quite simple." From her hiding spot, Hikari listen closely as she wished to know what Daisuke's answer would be. "My reason being is that saving you was the right thing to do and that's all."

Hearing that, Hikari quietly walked away without being notice. _"I had a feeling that was going to be his answer. I hope that it wasn't but I guess it isn't meant to be."_

Standing patiently at the outskirts of the alley, Hikari waited for Daisuke to come out which would be a few moments later. "Oh, there you are Hikari. Sorry about running off like I did. Can you ever forgive me?" Daisuke went so far as to bow before her.

Not being able to deny the act, Hikari couldn't help but find Daisuke's behavior humorous as she lightly chuckled. "Okay Daisuke I forgive you. It's getting late and I really need to get home. Care to walk me there?" Daisuke answered by lightly placing his arm on her waist. On the surface it looked as though the two were an ordinary happy couple but that was not the case.

Unnoticed by her companion, Hikari's demeanor was anything but content. _"What's happening now is nice. It's unfortunate that it isn't meant to be."_

-/-/-/-/-

The Next Night…

"Today was an interesting day wasn't it?" questioned Ken as he and his companions were walking down the street.

"That would be an understatement Ken." remarked James while he walked behind his friends.

While it seemed like the two males had enjoyed the activity, their two other associates was another story. "I still don't see what the big deal is." said Miyako and by the tone that was in her voice she wasn't as thrilled about what they did for the day. "Was it really that fun going to a car show that had nothing more than cars and barely dressed women all over them?"

"There were cars at the show?" James was obviously making a joke it still resulted in him getting a small smack in the back of the head. "Hey now, I was only kidding."

Even though she knew this, Mimi could not help but give her boyfriend an unpleasant stare. "It may have been a joke but it doesn't mean that Miyako and I appreciated it." Mimi indeed wasn't please but not really that upset. "Would you like it if me and her dressed up like those girls at the car show?"

"Are you saying that you would really do that?" Like with his previous remark James got hit in the head only this time it was added along with a stiff punch to the arm by Miyako. "It was another joke. A bad one I grant you but a joke none the less." By the expression on the girls' faces it was clear that they weren't please with his bad attempt at humor. "Come on, how about a little support here Ken."

Knowing the possible ramifications for siding with his male friend, Ken shook his head. "Sorry James, you're on your own. I know when to not get involved in a losing fight." About that time the four of them had reached their destination as they headed up the driveway of Daisuke's place. "How much do you want to bet that Daisuke and Hikari are in there being all hug and kisses with one another?" No one responded to Ken's words as they all felt that was most likely the case. Quietly the door was open and what they witness was not what they expected.

"I can't believe what you're saying. Are you messed up in the head?" The four new arrivals were shocked to see that Daisuke was giving some harsh words to Hikari who didn't seem to be ready to back down.

"No, I'm all right in the head and I'm serious about what I said. Is it possible that you're so thick headed that you can't understand me?" In a huff the two of them turned away to where their backs were facing one another.

Caught by complete shock what they just witness, Ken and the others slowly came between their two bickering friends. "Hey what's going on here? Why are the two of you going at one another like this?" Ken was trying to be the peacekeeper but was proving futile.

"Why don't you ask Daisuke? He's the one who's making a big case over it." Not taking too kindly to Hikari's words, Daisuke quickly shot back.

"Don't even try to turn this around on me." Daisuke immediately shot back. "You're simply acting like someone who gets all upset when something doesn't go their way."

Fearing that if they allowed this shouting match to continue it may lead to something that would be regretted later, Mimi tried to be the voice of reason. "Come on you guys stop it. You two are a couple and you shouldn't be going at each other like this."

"That's where you're wrong Mimi." muttered Daisuke in a seldom tone. "We're no longer together." To say that the four new arrivals were shocked by what they heard would be an understatement as none of them could come up with any type of response. "Don't even bother to ask me why we broke up. If you want answers ask her." Walking off Daisuke headed for the front door while grabbing his coat along the way. "I'm out of here. I need to get some air."

Without so much as a word, Daisuke left, leaving his friends behind. With one of the possible informants gone, Ken and the others turned their attention toward Hikari in the hopes of getting some answers. "I know that this might not be any of our business but could you please tell us what's going on between you and Daisuke?"

Coming to the realization that there was no way to get away from it, Hikari surrendered to her friends' request. For the next half hour she explained to them what was going on. Being more precise, she told them about the incident that happened the previous night.

"That's what you guys were arguing about?" questioned James. "You're upset because two women were fawning all over him? It sounds to me that it's nothing more than jealousy."

"It has nothing to do with being jealous." Hikari quickly answered back. "When he refused those girls' offer he said that the reason why he was doing that was because he was doing what he had to do and nothing else. It was then that I came to the realization that our relationship would just end in heartache. Daisuke is on a mission that'll take up a lot of his time and energy. Add to the fact that he's practically immortal it would lead to nothing more than trouble if we stayed together."

There was obviously more to the matter than what Hikari was saying but it was apparent that she wasn't going to discuss it any further. "Listen you guys, I'm not feeling all that great at the moment. So I'll be headed home. Call me if only if it's an emergency." Just as with Daisuke earlier, Hikari headed out, leaving the four friends in complete confusion about what just went on before them.

-/-/-/-/-

"_I can't believe that girl."_ In the streets of Kyoto its people were going about their business and also trying to do something to free them from their daily problems. One of those people was Daisuke Motomiya as he attempted to forget about the argument that he recently had with Hikari. Unfortunately it was not working.

"_How could she think something like that is beyond me. I'll be the first to admit that our relationship was an unusual one but I thought that it didn't matter since we both cared for one another."_ Recalling that recent incident only furthered infuriate the vampire with a soul. _"Of all the things that I could think of that might cause us to break up, that one was at the bottom of the list."_

With every time that Daisuke tried to understand Hikari's reasoning the more it confused him. Thankfully he was able to momentarily forget about it when once again he had to deal with a problem that was happening in an alley. Unlike last time however the problem was being caused by a small group of vampires who were trying to snack on a young couple. In a way this was a pleasing distraction for Daisuke. The reason being that he was able to take out his frustration out on the vampires and not worrying about going to far as they'd be dusted in the end.

In no time the vamps were dealt with and not bothering to give the couple anymore attention than to tell them to head on home, Daisuke stood there in the now deserted alley. _"That was a good way to blow off some steam. Perhaps I should be heading home since it'll be sunrise in a few hours." _He was about to head out when an unknown feeling came over him.

"_What is this feeling that I'm experiencing?"_ The feeling only got stronger as it actually caused Daisuke to fall to a knee. _"It feels as though I'm being torn apart."_ It became so unbearable that he was on the verge of losing consciousness. As he was about to black out, a flash of blinding light consumed him and moments later it seemingly exploded. The explosion was so strong that it sent Daisuke against the alley way with such force that it resulted in him blacking out.

-/-/-/-/-

"Where could he be? There really isn't that many places for him to go." It was the next day and Ken, Miyako, Mimi and James were back at Daisuke's place in the hopes that they could further figure out what the deal was between him and Hikari. However, that wouldn't be possible as Daisuke was nowhere to be found. "Is there any kind of note or something about where he might have gone?" questioned Ken.

"There isn't anything like that around here." Miyako answered as she searched around like everyone else. "Perhaps he didn't come home last night and is merely hiding out until nightfall." That seemed to be the most reasonable excuse to everyone until James voiced his opinion.

"Or maybe he and Hikari made up and are with one another at the moment." By the silence that came over the place they wondered if they could possible be the case.

"I don't think that's the case." retorted Mimi with some hesitance. "After getting home I spent the rest of the night there and not once did Daisuke try to contact her let alone meet up with Hikari. In other words, Daisuke is somewhere else and we have no idea where that place is."

"Something tells me we won't have to go looking for him." Before anyone could question James' words, the sound of the front door being closed and the one responsible was Daisuke. "Hey there man, where were you for the entire night? The girls were starting to worry about you."

"Daisuke didn't respond as he just looked at them with a peculiar stare. Without a word he walked pass them and only stopped when he came to one of the walls. Saying that his friends were becoming concern with Daisuke's unusual behavior would be an understatement. Being the first one to act, Ken slowly went over to him. "Is everything all right?"

He received no answer from Daisuke and just as Ken was about to try again he happen to notice something. Hanging from the wall was a mirror. However, what really caught Ken's attention was that reflecting off the mirror was not only his reflection but Daisuke's as well. "What the hell? Daisuke, how is this possible?" The sound of Ken's sudden outburst caught everyone's attention. Once they saw what the fuss was about they too showed their surprise over this latest discovery.

"How could this be?" muttered Miyako. "I thought that vampires didn't have reflections. Does this somehow connected with what you were doing last night?"

Like with the previous question, Daisuke didn't answer as he was warily touched his face while watching his actions being reflected off of the mirror. It was as though he was trying to grasp what was going on.

"I seriously have no idea what's happening." Daisuke finally spoke up. "I had dealt with some vamps and was about to head home when suddenly a strange feeling came over me. For a while it felt as though I was being pulled apart. Then just as the feeling was going away, a blast occurred which knocked me out. When I came to it was morning and when I was able to, I headed back here."

"But that doesn't explain why you suddenly have a reflection." reinforced Miyako. "Also how were you able to get back here while the sun was out? Did you get here by cab or did you actually travel all the way here under the cover of your coat?"

"Actually, I did neither. I simply walked here." That answer left his friends in confusion. Looking down at his right hand, Daisuke just stared at it intently. "I don't know how this happen you guys but I think that I'm…I'm human."

Once that bit of information was said it nearly floored everyone. "That can't be." declared Mimi who was the first to recover from the shock. "There's no way that you can be human." Mimi stopped her little rant as she happened to recall something. "Could this have something to do with the prophecy that was in those Mystic Scrolls?"

Feeling a little in the dark, James entered the conversation. "Pardon me, newbie here. What prophecy are you talking about and how does it involved Daisuke?"

"It was a few months ago. Before we met up with you." answered his girlfriend, Mimi. "We came across some scrolls that had a prophecy in them. Once translated it was discovered that there was a prophecy that involved a vampire with a soul. It stated that if Daisuke did enough good he would become human again. Apparently that prophecy had become a reality."

"I'm not so sure about that Mimi." replied Daisuke who was seemingly coming to terms with the new predicament. "If you look at all of the good that I've done they don't really add up for me to become human." Slowly he walked over to one of the windows and allowed himself to be bathed in the early morning sunlight. "For some reason this doesn't feel right."

"Who cares if this is right or wrong?" exclaimed a surprisingly vocal James. "Don't you see what you have before you? You've been basically given a second chance at life. In my opinion you shouldn't be complaining about what was given to you."

"I agree with what James is saying." added Miyako. "You shouldn't complain about what has happen to you. I think I speak for everyone when I say that you deserve this second chance at life." The others showed their agreement by the nod of the head. "The question that you should ask yourself now is that with this second chance at being human, what do you plan on doing with it?"

Daisuke didn't reply as he didn't know the answer. When it seemed as though he discovered what he wanted, a small smile came across his face.

-/-/-/-/-

"All right everyone that's it for today. See you all tomorrow." With that announcement everyone headed off to enjoy the break that they had for the rest of the day. One of those people was Hikari as she was freed from the photo shoot that she was partaking in. The location of the shoot was a meadow that had a small forest that was behind the photographers and a stream that Hikari and the two other models were position in front of as it was viewed as a good photo opportunity.

With the job was called for the day, Hikari couldn't be anymore glad. While the shoot was tough all on its own but add that with her current issues that she was having with Daisuke and their rocky relationship it only made it worse. _"What am I going to do?"_ she thought as she changed back into her casual clothes.

"_Even though I'm still angry with Daisuke I can't help but to think about him. I agreed to end our relationship, only now I have to wonder if the both of us simply took the easy way out instead of trying to solve the real problems that were going on between us." _Hikari's train of thought was soon broken when one of the other models called out to her.

"Hey Hikari, your boyfriend is waiting for you outside. He said that he needs to discuss something important with you."

When she heard that Hikari quickly finish changing and headed out of the dressing room looking for the person that was said to be her boyfriend. _"Could it be Daisuke? No, it can't be. Don't get your hopes up Hikari."_ Her hopes were proven accurate as standing underneath the shade of a large tree was indeed Daisuke. As she went over to him she notice that there was something different about him but couldn't tell what it was. "Daisuke, what the heck are you doing here?" Hikari tried to sound angry with him but she wasn't able to do so.

Casually Daisuke moved away from the tree that he was leaning against. "We need to discuss about the issues that are between us." Turning away he began to walk further into the forest. "Walk with me if you wish to talk. If not, stay here." Not even looking back he continued to walk away. Hikari's first response was to stay and let Daisuke walk off. However, her wanting to resolve their issues got the better of her as she quickly hurried to catch up with him.

For who knows how long neither one spoke as they simply walked beside one another until Daisuke broke the silence. "As I said before, I may not l may not like your decision to break up but I understand the reason behind it." All he got as a reply from Hikari was a small nod of the head that almost went unnoticed. "You believed that my quest in wanting to do good was taking priority over my relationship with you and something tells me that you still think that way."

"Can you blame me?" questioned Hikari as she spoke for the first time in sometime. "Take what happen during our last date for example. When you heard those women's cries for help you immediately went to them without so much as saying a word to me. You basically ditched me."

For a moment Daisuke wanted to argue his case. But when he took notice of the seriousness behind Hikari's words he remained quiet. "To add insult to injury you said that the only reason you didn't accept those women's version of a reward is because you were only doing the right thing. Hearing you say that made me feel as though our relationship wasn't even a factor." With Hikari apparently done expressing her feelings it was Daisuke's turn to talk as he remained silent the whole time.

"You can only imagine how sorry I felt when I realize how much that hurt you. For so long I've been trained to protect those who are unable to do it themselves and when I see or hear trouble I instinctively go confront it. Also, I know that you have had trouble with me being a vampire as it may lead to problems in our potential relationship." Even though she didn't say it he could tell by Hikari's body language that he hit the nail on the head. "But I due believe that I can remedy the situation and I think that now is as good as anytime to start."

The confusion that Hikari was feeling was obvious as she stared at Daisuke with a bewildered stare. It was also that time that she took notice that she was so focus in their conversation that she didn't realize that they had walked from and they were now standing in a clearing with the sun shinning freely upon them. More importantly, it left Daisuke exposed to the sunlight, which would be fatal if something wasn't done.

"We got to move Daisuke. If we don't you're going to be literally on fire if we don't act fast." Even with the severity of the warning, Daisuke wasn't moving from his spot, even when Hikari tried to pull him back to the safety of the shade. It only took about a few seconds for her to realize that nothing was happening to her friend. "What's going on Daisuke? Why aren't you burning up, let alone sizzling?"

Shifting his full attention towards his close friend, Daisuke gave Hikari a very caring smile. Tentatively he placed his hand under her chin which he then lifted up so that the two of them were looking at each other in the eye. "Let's just say that I've been given a second chance and I'm not going to waste it." Leaning forward, Daisuke captured Hikari's lips with his and even though she was reluctant at first, Hikari eventually gave into her emotions as she closed her eyes and after wrapping her arms around his neck started to return the kiss.

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I bet most of you didn't expect that. Having Daisuke become human was something that I thought about doing ever since I started working on this story and I'm glad how it turned out. However, remember that not all good things come without a price and you'll find out what that price will be in the upcoming chapters. 

Speaking of which, since I'm nearly done with this story I've decided to post up my chapters sooner than once a month. That means expect the next chapter to be out within a week or so. Until then, see ya and I hope you enjoyed the chapter.


	2. Spoken Too Soon

Like I pormise, I've put up the next chapter to this story. This chapter is basically a follow up for what took place in the previous one but it does help to set up for what's to come later on. I'm not going to waste anymore of your time, so here is the disclaimer, I don't own digimon.  
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_

_We all have big changes in our lives that are more or less a second chance.  
Harrison Ford (1942 - ), quoted by Garry Jenkins in 'Harrison Ford: Imperfect Hero'_

Chapter 2:  
Spoken Too Soon

Hours Later...

"All right I'm coming, I'm coming." shouted a woman. Walking through her apartment the woman headed over to the door where someone was knocking on it relentlessly. When the woman finally reached the door she opened it. "All right, whoever you are you better have a good reason in nearly pounding my door down or so help me I'll-" The rant was cut short when she realized who the person was. "You're early."

The one responsible for the disturbance merely smiled. "What can I say, I rather be early than late when it comes to important matters."

Neither one said a word for a while as they simply stared at one another. It wasn't until the woman smiled did the silence break. "It's good to see you Daisuke."

Returning the gesture the man identified as Daisuke smiled back. "The same goes for me, Jun." After exchanging pleasantries the two didn't know where to go next for sometime. "Did they show up?" he asked with some apprehension in his voice.

Understanding what he was referring to, Jun nodded her head. "They're here. I called them over after you called me to do so. Of course when they asked why for the sudden gathering I told them that I didn't know since I wasn't informed of the reason behind it myself." That seem to satisfy the younger Motomiya sibling as he nodded his head. "Mind telling me the reason why you ask me to get our parents to come over?"

"You'll find out in due time Jun. Trust me; it's something that I would rather tell you when you're all together." Looking over to his side Daisuke motioned for someone. "I hope that you don't mind but I brought along some company." Scooting over he allowed his company to show themselves which was revealed to be a somewhat nervous Hikari. "You're okay with this, sis?"

"Sure I am. I think that I speak for mom and dad when I say that Hikari is practically a part of this family. After all, our family has known her since the two of you were just kids. The two of you were almost inseparable back when you were younger." That last remark got its desired effect as both the faces of Daisuke and Hikari became covered in blush.

"Well, that's enough of the teasing. Let's go to the living room where mom and dad are waiting." Turning around, Jun started to walk off but suddenly stopped. "Oh wait, I forgot that this is your first time here and you haven't actually been invited. To fix that problem I hereby invite-"

Before she could finished she saw that her brother at the doorway. However, what caught her attention was that Daisuke was standing in the hallway all casually. "What in the world? How are you able to be in here?" she questioned as she didn't know what to make of the situation. "There's no way that this could be possible."

"Trust me, all we be explain in due time." Not elaborating on the matter any further, Daisuke walked off, leaving his sister behind.

"You know what's going on don't you?" asked the confused female Motomiya sibling to Hikari who during the whole brother-sister conversation had let herself in and was now standing beside her.

Glancing over to the other woman, Hikari gave her an unbiased look. "Maybe I do or may I don't. You'll just have to find out when your parents does." Just like with Daisuke moments ago, Hikari left Jun behind so she could join everyone else.

"_Man, those two are so a like that they almost think the same way."_ Allowing a small smile to come across her face she went to join the others so that she could hear what the big news that her brother had. _"By the way he's making a fuss about it I have a feeling that it must be something big."_

-/-/-/-/-

An Hour Later…

"I can't believe it." said an amazed Jun. Daisuke had just explained to his family about his surprise return to humanity and it was no surprise that they were shock at what they just heard. "I can hardly believe it. It must be some kind of trick."

For them to believe what they were told was true was a hard pill to swallow. They went so far as to put him in front of the window so that the sunlight could go over him and only after seeing that nothing was happening did they believe him. Once they came to terms with the situation they each had interesting reactions but no more interesting than what happen with his mother, Anzu.

"Oh, I'm so happy for you my son." To further show her joy she wrapped her arms around Daisuke and put him in a crushing hug. "You are deserving of this second chance." A few tears had managed to escape his mom's eyes which Daisuke went ahead and wiped them away.

"I agree with your mother on this, son." added his father, Hiroto who placed a hand on Daisuke's shoulder. "You've done so much for others, whether it was as a human or vampire, you never asked for anything in return. You deserve this and don't even try to deny it."

As the son and parents talked, Jun was having a discussion of her own with Hikari. "This is good news. You must be happy for my brother."

Without really realizing it a small but tender smile came over Hikari's face. "I am glad for him, Jun. His first chance at life was unfairly taken away from him. If anyone should be given a second chance at living it should be him."

Flashbacks to the time when she and her parents heard about Daisuke being dead came back to Jun. That was a time that she would like to forget. It took sometime for both her and her parents to recover from their loss. Shaking off those unpleasant memories she wanted to lighten the feeling that she was having.

"This could turn out good for you as well Hikari." Getting only a confused look from the woman in question she continued. "You and my brother can go on dates that aren't just at night." she joked as she poked her friend lightly in the side with her elbow.

Despite that it was meant as a joke it still caused Hikari to slightly blush. "That would be a good change from our usual dates." Hikari's remark was barely hearable but Jun managed to hear what was said.

"Did I hear you right? I was only kidding when I said that. Are you telling me that the two of you are actually dating?" Regrettably, Jun said that last part louder than needed which caused Daisuke and his parents to turn their attention towards the two women. All the added attention made Hikari extremely uneasy and caused her to blush heavily and she wasn't the only one as Daisuke was also blushing as it involved him as well.

The silence and averting eye glances that they were getting form the two was all the answering that the Motomiya family needed to confirm what they heard. Daisuke and Hikari hoped that they would get off of the subject but it wouldn't be the case. "Oh, that's wonderful." Daisuke's mother squealed in excitement. "I always knew that if the two of you got together you would make the most adorable couple."

"Come on mom don't make this bigger than it is." informed Daisuke in the hopes of moving away from the subject. "It's true, Hikari and I are together and despite some rough moments we're doing fine." He hoped that would be the end of the discussion. How wrong he was and it was all thanks to his sister.

"So, when is your guys' wedding going to be? Everyone in that room became quite as they were surprise at what was said. "Hey now, I was only joking. I wasn't being serious. Even I know that it'll be a while until the two of you get to that point, if at all."

Letting out a uneasy laugh, Daisuke went back to the true topic that needed to be touched upon. "Well, that's all well and good sis but there's still something that I need to do." Understanding what he was referring to, Jun simply nodded her head. "Where is she right now?"

"She's in her room. It's down the hall, second door to the right." Once being given the information that he wanted Daisuke headed to his desired destination and he was walking with a purpose.

"He's going to talk with her isn't he?" asked Hikari even though she already knew the answer.

"Yeah he is." Unlike earlier, Jun spoke without the humorous manner but was being completely serious. "This is something that he needs to do. Let's only hope it turns out all right."

-/-/-/-/-

It didn't take long for Daisuke to reach his destination and when he got there he began to have second thoughts. _"Come on Daisuke, you can do this. Now suck it up and do it."_

Somewhat tentatively he knocked on the door. "Hey, it's me. Is it all right if I come in?" Getting no reply Daisuke slowly opened the door and entered. He was immediately covered in darkness as there was hardly any light coming in. Despite the poor light he was able to see that seating at a desk was his daughter, Serenity.

She was just sitting there slightly leaning over the desk and with the exception of her body moving up and down because of her breathing she was hardly moving. As Daisuke looked over at Serenity he noticed that she was looking at the only items that were on the desk. Those things were two pictures that were in separate picture frames. One of those pictures was of his sister, Serenity's aunt Jun and who knows how she got it but the other picture was of the woman who truly cared for Serenity while she was with the Takenaka Corporation, Rowan Stevens.

"So, are you just going to stand there or tell me why you're here?" By serenity's tone it was clear that she wasn't in the mood to fool around. That suited Daisuke just fine as he saw that there was no reason to beat around the busy.

"Well, you see, I'm here to tell you that something happen to me recently and I thought that you had a right to know." muttered a slightly nervous Daisuke. _"Why am I so worried about telling this to my own daughter over everyone else?"_ he asked himself. _"Perhaps it has something to do with her being associated with the Takenaka Corporation, where she was assigned the job of dealing with me."_

"Does what you're trying to say have anything to do with you becoming human again?" Serenity's question caught Daisuke completely off guard as he couldn't speak for a while. He couldn't believe that Serenity would already know.

"H-How did you already knew that?" Soon after saying that, Daisuke knew the answer to his question. "You heard what was said in the living room didn't you?" He wouldn't be surprise if that was the case.

Despite herself Serenity smiled a little. "It was that and also I could sense a difference in you." Turning around she finally looked at her father. "I no longer sense any vampire in you, only human. Apparently it's a little gift that I have that inherited from my parents."

Being unable to help himself, Daisuke let out a small chuckle. "Perhaps that's what it is." Another moment of silence came over the two only this time it was a light hearted one without any tension. "Since you already know that then it'll make it easier for what I got to say next." Seating down at the edge of Serenity's bed he collected himself for what was going to be discussed.

"With me no longer the person that I once was I was hoping that you could perhaps take over patrolling." Serenity's immediate reaction was surprise quickly followed by an unbelievable look. "You may be wondering why I'm asking you something like this instead of my friends. The reason is that while I believe in the abilities of my friends I think that they're not ready for what's to come." By the look that he was going Serenity it was obvious that he was being completely truthful.

"We both know that there are big battles coming, bigger than we can ever imagine. Even if I was still what I was the chances of all of us getting through them are slim. Hopefully you'll be able to improve our chances." By the looks of it Serenity was allowing her father's words to sink in. "What I'm asking is are you willing to take up the fight?"

For a while Serenity said nothing as she seemed to be deciding what her answer would be. When it appeared as though she was going to answer she glanced back over to the desk and more precisely, the picture of Rowan. After seeing that picture it seemed like Serenity had found out what her answer was. "Consider me as being apart of the fight."

Glad to hear her answer, Daisuke was about to give Serenity a fatherly hug but knew that she wouldn't appreciate the gesture he decided to go with a simple handshake which she thankfully accepted. "Now that you have this second chance at life, what do you plan to do with it?" When that question was asked Daisuke didn't answer right away as he never really thought about it.

"To be honest, I haven't really thought that far. I'll still fight if it's necessary but I think that I'm going to try and have a somewhat normal life."

"Does this 'potential normal' life include a certain someone? A brown haired lady named of Hikari perhaps?" That remark cause Daisuke to look at her in shock. He never expected Serenity to say something like that. "I may not have been around you and your friends that much but it's clear to see that there's something going on between the two of your. I have no experience in that area but don't take what you got with her for granted. You never know when the person that you care for may be taken away from you."

Daisuke knew that his daughter knew what she was talking about. While under the services of those bastards in the Takenaka Corporation there was only one person who didn't see her as merely a weapon and that person was Rowan Stevens, who viewed Serenity almost as her own daughter. When she was killed right before Serenity's eyes by Hitomi it took its toll on her. It took her some time to recover from that incident but it was apparent that she still thought about that unpleasant experience.

Instead of responding with words, Daisuke responded by getting closer to Serenity and draping an arm around her in the hopes that it would comfort her, even if it helped only a little. Serenity seemed to see what he was trying to do as she allowed him to do so. Putting aside the issues that still remained between the two; they simply tried to comfort one another as they knew that there were many hardships ahead of them and hoped that they would be prepared for them when they showed themselves.

-/-/-/-/-

Two Weeks Later…

The sun slowly began to rise into the sky of Kyoto and as it rose its rays swept over the city. One of those places was Hikari's apartment as the rays of the sun poured through her window and came over Hikari as she tried to sleep. Finally giving up on the chances of getting anymore sleep Hikari reluctantly opened her eyes.

"_Isn't this just great? On the day that I have no work or not having to go anywhere and I can't enjoy any extra sleep. Might at well give it up and get up."_ Getting out of bed, Hikari stretched to get of any stiffness. Grabbing a fresh pair of clothes she went to take a shower and after she was done and in her clothes she headed for the kitchen where Mimi was already there eating some breakfast.

"What are you doing up?" asked Mimi. "I thought you said that you were going to sleep in late."

"That was the plan but it didn't happen." Moving her head around, Hikari got rid of a remaining knot that was in her neck and once it was gone she got herself something to eat. "I tried to go back to sleep but no matter what I tried I couldn't. Apparently I got more sleep than I originally thought."

"Or maybe it's because you weren't out all night with Daisuke like usual." Mimi joked in good humor. She got her desired result as Hikari nearly choked on her breakfast.

Regaining her composure, Hikari gave her friend and roommate with a stare. "I could say the same thing about you. After all, you spend most of your nights with James." Mimi tried to hold it in but was unable to keep the blush from coming over her face. Seeing this, Hikari continued with her taunting. "With all the time you spend with him it feels as though the two of you were married or something."

Knowing what her friend was doing, Mimi tried to change the subject. "A letter came for you. I don't know how but I saw it on the coffee table when I woke up."

The switch of topics worked as Hikari got up and went to the coffee table where the letter that Mimi mentioned was. There was nothing fancy about it as it was a simple envelope that had nothing but her name written on it. Opening it she took out the folded piece of paper and when Hikari unfolded the paper she nearly dropped it.

Noticing Hikari's expression, Mimi went over to her. "Hey, what's wrong? Is that letter really that bad?" Unable to say anything, Hikari just handed the paper to her.

Once seeing it Mimi immediately knew why Hikari was so affected by it. On the paper was a drawing but what was so disturbing about it was that it was a drawing of Hikari as she slept. Also, there was something written in the bottom right hand corner that was just as disturbing as the drawing itself. What was written was, "I'll be seeing you soon."

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I bet that some of you didn't expect what happen to take place did you? The chapter ended in a cliffhanger and it's somewhat of a cruel way to end it but as with like other cliffhangers it helps to develop the interest for what's to come in the future chapters and I bet that most of you don't know who's responsible for Hikari's little 'gift'. Anyways, please leave a review and until I update again, which will be most likely later this week, see ya. 


	3. Face to Face With One’s Self

I promise to have the next chapter out within a week and I am a man of my word. This chapter is a interesting one since it reveals who the person behind the little gift that Hikari got in the previous chapter. With no further delay, go ahead and read the chapter. For the disclaimer, I don't own digimon.

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_Every minute you are thinking of evil, you might have been thinking of good instead. Refuse to pander to a morbid interest in your own misdeeds. Pick yourself up, be sorry, shake yourself, and go on again.  
Evelyn Underhill_

Chapter 3:  
Face to Face  
With One's Self

"Could someone tell me what the meaning of this is?" asked a very ticked off Daisuke. Right after opening the disturbing picture, Hikari and Mimi immediately called Daisuke and the others over to so they can see it themselves. When they saw it they expressed a variety of emotions but nowhere near to the furious anger that Daisuke was expressing at the moment. It looked as though he was on the verge of killing somebody.

"I'm telling you that I don't know." answered Hikari as she tried to calm her boyfriend did something that he might regret. "It just appeared with any type of address on it."

"She's telling the truth." added Ken. "Let's face facts Daisuke. Unless we get more information we're going at this blind." By the expression on everyone's face they were agreeing with Ken.

Realizing that allowing his anger to cloud his judgment, Daisuke calmed himself down. "All right then, let's think things through. Hikari, is there anyone that you suspect that could've done this?"

"He's right Hikari." exclaimed Mimi. "You are after all a very popular model. Could this have come from some obsess fan?"

"No, it can't be. It's true that I have some fans that are different than your casual ones but none of them would do something like this. Besides, there's no way that they could know where I live. Where I live isn't known to the public."

With that suspicion put on the back burner for the time being, they tried to think who could've been responsible. "Maybe it was the Takenaka Corporation." pondered Miyako. "It's not like they never done something messed with our heads." That seemed like the most reasonable thought but Daisuke put a stop to that.

"I don't think they're responsible for this. It's true that they do things that mess with our heads. But for whatever reason I doubt that they're behinds this. Also, if they were the ones who did this they would've done something else by now."

Picking up the drawing Daisuke gave it a heated glare. "For some unknown reason I believe that they person that's behind this is someone that we've never encountered before." Feeling the urge to rip the drawing to pieces growing he tossed it away from his reach. "All we can do for the moment is to investigate this further. Miyako, I want you and Ken to check out the local demon hangouts. Ask around but don't reveal anything if possible. Mimi, perhaps you should inform James about what's going just in case."

Following Daisuke's orders they headed out and soon the only ones that were left were Daisuke and Hikari. Neither one said a word as the two didn't know how to start up the conversation. Not being able to withstand it any longer, Daisuke finally spoke up. "Why don't you go ahead and say it already Hikari? We both know that you want to."

Not denying that he was right, Hikari went ahead and talked. "Why are you doing this Daisuke? Why are you insistent on doing this instead of having the police deal with it?" Daisuke was about to respond but Hikari continued. "And don't tell me that it's because I'm your girlfriend and it's your obligation to protect me."

"That's not the reason Hikari." A stern look by Hikari quickly changed Daisuke's response. "Okay, not the entire reason." Daisuke expression changed to complete seriousness before continuing. "There is a possibility of this being a result of a crazy fan but what if it isn't? We both have come across many strange and dangerous things these past few years. Perhaps one of those things that is behind this and it would be better if we handle this than police who have no clue on what they are up against."

"But if it is something not human what can we do about it? At the moment the only super strong person that we have is Miyako."

"Have you forgotten about my daughter, Serenity? She said that she was willing to help if we needed her help." Not even turning his head, Daisuke gave Hikari a suspicious stare from the corner of his eye. "You have a problem trusting her?"

Hikari was about to deny the claim but the look that Daisuke was giving her stopped her form doing so. "On a certain stand point I don't." she reluctantly confessed. "Let's not forget that in the not so distant past she nearly killed you. Also, she was apart of the Takenaka Corporation, whose one of their main objectives is you."

"Trust me, I haven't forgotten. But remember, that she's going through hard times at the moment. Struggling on what she should believe in, watching the first person that she truly trusted get killed right before her eyes and then being betrayed by the people who in a way brought her into the world. No matter how tough a person says they are those things will take their toll on them." An image of a heart broken Serenity kneeling over Rowan's dead body appeared in Daisuke's mind. It had pained him to see his daughter like that and hoped that he would never have to again.

"Thankfully she has proven to be a strong young woman and is recovering. However, something tells me that there's another reason why you're so worried about us handling this. Mind telling me what that reason could be?"

Instead of coming up with some sort of lie that wasn't true, Hikari decided to tell the truth. "I've known you for a long time Daisuke. Almost my whole life and I know that when you see someone that you care for is in trouble you'll do whatever you can to help them despite what happens to you as a result." Taking a deep breath before continuing and even though he wasn't looking directly at her, Hikari knew that Daisuke was listening carefully.

"You have to remember that you're now human Daisuke. You no longer can rely on the super strength, enhance abilities or quick healing that you had when you were a vampire. Face facts Daisuke, you now have the fighting capability as every other human."

If that bit of realization was meant to deter Daisuke it didn't work as he maintained the same determined expression on his face. "You do know that you're down grading yourself when you say that? After all, you have had your fair share of fights. You even had one that was just you, Miyako and Mimi which Ken I didn't even know about until it was done." Turning in his chair Daisuke looked right into Hikari's eyes. "Just cut the bullshit and tell me the _true _reason why you're so apprehensive about this whole thing."

"I just don't want you to get hurt." Hikari quickly responded. "Don't get me wrong. I've seen you get hurt more times then I wish to remember. But every time it has happen I had the security that you'd recover because your quick vampire healing. However, that's all changed now that you're human." As she spoke, Hikari's voice began to break. "If you were to get hurt like how you've been in the past you may not survive and I couldn't bare it if that were to happen."

Finally, not being able to hold it in any longer, Hikari allowed the tears that she had been keeping in to come pouring out and the sobs of sorrow to escape from her throat. Unable to standby and watch someone that he cared for in such despair, Daisuke got up and pulled Hikari into a heartfelt embrace.

"Hey now, it's okay. There's no need to worry." Fortunately Hikari had calmed down but would occasionally have to choke back a sob or her nose would sniffle. "I had no idea that you were this worried about my well being. Pulling her away from him, Daisuke lightly lifted Hikari's head so that the two were looking into each others eyes. "I truly appreciate your concern for me, really I do. However, you don't have to worry yourself sick over me. Just because I'm human now doesn't mean that I'm completely defenseless. Remember, I was the one who taught you how to defend yourself. Also, there's someone that's very special to me that I never wish to shed any tears because of me."

For a while the only thing that went on between the two was them looking into the others eyes. Slowly, if by some unknown force, Daisuke and Hikari leaned towards one another until their lips were just inches away from each other. Almost tentatively they began to kiss one another. As they continued to kiss it only got more heated. It even got to the point that they were starting to lean against the table and it seemed as though Hikari was trying to make Daisuke lay on top of it with her going with him.

Daisuke sensed this as he broke his kiss with Hikari and gave her a perplexed stare. "Hold up Hikari. Don't you think that we're going a little fast here? Maybe you're letting your emotions from what's been going on cloud your better judgment."

Tilting her head downward, Hikari lightly clasped her hands around Daisuke's shirt. "Believe me Daisuke; I'm not being clouded by anything." Even though she tried to put up a strong front, it was clear that Hikari was close to breaking down again. "I'm still worried about you getting hurt. I'll probably always be worried about your safety." Finally lifting her head back up, Daisuke could see that more tears were on the verge of coming out from the corners of Hikari's eyes.

"I don't know why but your words have somewhat put me at ease." With a shaky hand, Hikari stroked Daisuke's cheek. "As for our relationship going too fast, just think about this. We've known each other for almost our entire lives. We know the pain and troubles that the other has experienced as well as the hopes and dreams that we wish to accomplish. Despite all of the troubles and hardships that each of us have gone through we managed to become more than friends. After everything that we've been through can you honestly say from the bottom of your heart that we're going too fast?"

For what felt like eternity for Hikari, Daisuke didn't respond as he just looked at her with an expression that lacked any real emotion. Then, being as tender as possible he slowly stroked his hand over Hikari's cheek. Without a word Daisuke brought his face closer to Hikari's where they then began another passionate exchange.

After who knows how long, the two of them finally broke away as they each tried to regain their composure. "Does that answer your question?" asked Daisuke as he tried to recover his breath.

With a very loving smile, Hikari lend closer to where she was able to place her head next to Daisuke's. "I'm not so sure. I think I need another one of those kisses to be certain." Being all to willing too comply with her request; Daisuke once again pressed his lips with Hikari's. Like with the previous exchange, this one was a passionate one as it almost appeared as though they were pouring their very souls into the loving embrace.

What happen next would caught Hikari by complete surprise as Daisuke scooped her up in his arms and carried her across the house. "I believe it would be best if we continued this in a more proper setting. Wouldn't you agree?" Unable to trust her ability to speak at the moment, Hikari merely nodded her head as they continued their journey to their desired destination.

-/-/-/-/-

A Week Later…

For the past week Daisuke and the others had yet to discover who was responsible for the disturbing drawing that Hikari received. Even with the help of Serenity searching the streets, there were still no clues on who gave the drawing. Unfortunately it wouldn't be the only 'gift' that was given.

Two days ago a box appeared only this time it showed up at Daisuke's place and was addressed to everyone. When everyone arrived they discussed on what they should do with their newfound present. After a while it was decided that they would go ahead and open it. Cautiously the lid was removed but when they saw what was inside they wished that they hadn't.

Nearly the whole box was filled with blood. Whether the blood was from human or animal was uncertain. However, that wasn't the only thing that was inside as there was a verity of human body parts such as fingers and even an eyeball or two. When the contents of the box were seen there was a verity of reactions by all of them.

Mimi rushed to the nearest bathroom where she threw up, with Hikari not that far from doing the same thing. Ken's face paled considerable to where it was as white as a sheet. Even MIyako, who always tried to be all tough and everything got an uneasy feeling when she saw the contents that was inside the box. As for Daisuke, despite that he didn't show it, he was also affected by the incident.

Since then the search had increase but it didn't make that much of a difference. In the hopes that they would discover something that they previously miss they spread out every bit of information that they managed to gather in the hopes that some type of lead could be found. So far the process wasn't turning out so well.

"Ah, this is pointless." exclaimed a frustrated Miyako. "We've been looking over this stuff for who knows how long and we still haven't found anything that can help us."

"Well, bitching about it won't change things." remarked James as he helped with the investigation. "So stop with the complaining and concentrate at the matter at hand." By the look on Miyako's face it was clear that she was about to go after James. Hoping to stop something before it started, Hikari stepped in.

"Calm down you guys. All of us are pretty much stressed out from all of this but attacking one another isn't going to help any." Thankfully those words seem to do the trick as the tension slowly started to fade away. "It's true that all of this isn't really helping us. If only a big clue would present itself, then we might have a better chance at this."

Suddenly the phone began to ring. Being the closest Daisuke answered it. For a moment it seemed like whoever called had hung up and was about to do likewise until a voice was heard. "How's your guys' investigation going?" That immediately caught the attention of Daisuke.

"What did you say?" Everyone stopped what they were doing when they took notice of their friend's tone.

Despite the tone of Daisuke's voice, the person on the other end of the phone just laughed. "My, what's with the sudden change of attitude? I was simply asking a question." As he listened Daisuke tried to see if he could recognized the person's voice but he wasn't able to as it was somewhat distorted. "By the way, what did you think about the gifts that I sent you?"

While Daisuke was already becoming angered, the continuous taunting pushed him even further. "Who the fuck is this?"

"If you wish to find out then go to warehouse 7 at the docks. Be there by midnight and bring your friends. After all, the more the merrier." Before it could be asked the person on the other end hung up. Calmly Daisuke put the phone back on the receiver and that appeared to be the end of that. However, that changed when he suddenly picked up the phone and threw it across the room where it was smashed to bits.

"Everyone get ready. We're moving out." By the dead seriousness in his voice everyone knew that now wasn't the time to argue whatsoever with the former ensouled vampire.

-/-/-/-/-

Are you sure this is a smart thing to do?" questioned Ken. Shortly after heading out he and everyone arrived at warehouse 7. Since arriving they had yet to encounter anything out of the unusual.

"Yes I do." Daisuke quickly replied back. He was currently taking the front and was looking from side to side for any sign of whoever they were after. "Keep your eyes peeled you guys. The person that we're looking for can jump out from anywhere."

"My, my, aren't you a paranoid one." stated an unrecognizable voice. The owner of the voice couldn't be identified as he had yet to reveal himself. That would be soon rectified as someone stepped out from the shadows. "After all, I was the one who invited you here."

When all of them got a good look at who the person was they couldn't believe what they were seeing. "This can't be." voiced Hikari. "It has to be some kind of trick. I mean, Daisuke that person-" Before she could finish what she was going to say, Daisuke interrupted.

"I know. That person looks exactly like me." That statement couldn't be anymore truer as the person standing before them looked just like Daisuke. The two were so similar that the only way that they could be tell apart was that the Daisuke look-alike was dressed in a dark red shirt and black jeans in contrast to Daisuke's back shirt and blue jeans.

"_Who the hell is this guy?"_ thought Daisuke as he and everyone tried to comprehend what was going on. _"I don't know what it is but I got a feeling that this guy is more dangerous then we realize. We better be on guard until we figure this out."_

As if reading his thoughts, the look-alike gave a knowing smile. "You're wondering who or what I am aren't you?" Taking the shocked expression on Daisuke's face as a yes the look-alike elaborated further. "Let's just say that I have a connection with each of you guys. If you wish to know what I mean you have to beat me. Are you up for the challenge?"

Instead of answering with words the response was made with action as they went after the look-alike. Being the first one to reach him Miyako tried to go for a quick knockout. However, as she tried to land the blow it was avoided almost effortlessly. "There's no way I'm going to be taken down by a quick blow from you." Before she had a chance to do anything Miyako was hit with an uppercut that had such force behind it that it resulted in her sailing across the room.

Witnessing what happen to his close friend and perhaps love interest, Ken went after the adversary. Too bad he met with a similar fate as he was easily dealt with. Once he had done that the Daisuke look-alike went back into the darkness where he disappeared. "This is turning out to be quite a disappointment." he voiced. It was impossible to tell where he was due to him being hidden in the shadows and because of the building his voice was being echoed everywhere. "I was hoping for a challenge. At lease be somewhat around to how it was when I first encounter you guys."

"What are you talking about?" questioned Daisuke who was strolling to keep his frustration in check. With Miyako and Ken out of commission at the moment it only left him, Hikari and James to deal with the current situation. "You keep talking as though we fought you before but none of us remember even confronting you until now."

"You can't possibly be this ignorant." What happen next came as such a surprise that there was nothing that could be done to prevent it. Literally out of the blue the look-alike appeared behind Daisuke and twisted his arm behind his back.

Wanting to help their friend, Hikari and James tried to free him but even though he had only one arm at his disposal, the look-alike dealt with them quickly. "It was a time not that long ago when such a sneak attack would work on you. Maybe you're becoming careless."

In hoping to free himself, Daisuke struggled to get free but was unsuccessful as his adversary maintained his hold on him. "W-Who are you? How do you know this stuff about me?"

"You really want to know? Fine, I'll tell you." Leaning closer to where his mouth was beside Daisuke's ear he whispered something that couldn't be heard by anyone else. Whatever had been whispered had to be big as a look of great shock came across Daisuke's face. Appearing to have said what he wanted to say the look-alike moved back but maintained his grip. "You weren't expecting to hear that were you?"

Before he had a chance to gloat any further he groaned then surprisingly let go of Daisuke. "What the hell?" Reaching over his left shoulder the look-alike felt something sticking into his back. Looking back it was revealed to some type of dart. Peering further back he saw that the dart had came from a dart gun and the one who fired was someone that he didn't notice until now. "You…bitch." Those would be the look-alike's last words as he fell face first to the ground where he went unconscious.

It was a short time later that Ken and Miyako came over with the help of James. "Nice move Mimi." praised Hikari to the person who had hid herself in case they needed to do a surprise attack. Their attention soon turned to the person who was laid on the ground before them. "Now, does anyone have any idea who this is?"

"No clue." answered Mimi who was basically speaking for everyone. "But maybe Daisuke can tell us. It looked as though he whispered something to him before I hit him with the tranquilizer dart. Did he tell you who he was Daisuke?"

When no answer came, Hikari and the others turned to where the man in question was and saw that he was leaning up against the wall. "Are you okay Daisuke?"

Once again they got no answer as Daisuke had a bewildered look on his face. "It can't be." thought the former vampire. "It can't be him. There's just no way."

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Wasn't that a surprise? You probably didn't expect something like that were you? I understand that the discovery was only touched on a little but trust me, things will become more clearer and most likely want to know what's to come. 

As for the next chapter, like with this one I'll have it up on within a week. The latest will be Wednesday but most likely it won't take that long. So until then, see ya but leave a review before going please.


	4. Personal Demons

Here is the next chapter to my story and I do believe that this makes things very interesting. This chapter will further explain about the Daisuke look-alike. Also there'll be some surprises that you may not have expected. Well, not to waste anymore of your time, here is the lastest chapter and for the disclaimer, I don't own digimon.

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_Freedom is a package deal – with it comes responsibilities and consequences.  
Author Unknown_

Chapter 4:  
Personal Demons

"Is everything secure?"

"Yes. All of the precautions have been taken."

"Are we positive nothing will go wrong?" Currently Daisuke and friends were at his place. They were gathered around to discuss about an important matter.

"Relax Daisuke. Everything that was needed to be done has been taken cared of." informed Miyako as if it was no big deal. "We securely contained our guest in the basement as you requested. There's no way for him to move without us noticing." Even with that attempt of reassurance Daisuke wasn't all that sure. "Are you going to tell us why you're being so paranoid about this?"

For a while it seemed like Daisuke was debating on whether to explain his reason. After a moment he apparently had came to a decision. "While I was under the grasp of our current 'guest' he told me some interesting things. One of those things was who he is." When that was said everyone had their immediate focus on what they hope would be a revelation. "He was telling the truth when he said that we had encountered him before. The identity of the person is none other than…Dai."

As to be expected, Daisuke's friends weren't all that pleased to hear that surprising news as they all had unpleasant looks on their faces. All of them that is except for James who didn't understand what was going on.

"Un, sorry about asking this but I feel like the odd man here but I need to ask. What's the big deal here? Who's this Dai person that has you all so upset?" No one knew how to explain the situation to James. Feeling that she was the one who should tell him, Mimi went ahead and told her boyfriend.

"Dai is a vampire that we encountered half a year ago. We went against him only once but he left an impression on us and before you ask we had a reason why we didn't turn him to dust. The reason being that Dai was Daisuke. To be more precise, Dai is the name of the demonic side that was apart of Daisuke." That revelation really surprised James but he kept quite as Mimi continued with the back story. "He temporarily took control of our friend's body and one of his first objectives was to try and kill all of us. Thankfully we were able to stop him and Daisuke regained control."

"Damn, that was some serious shit." stated James after hearing the whole story. "But how can we be certain that this person is actually Dai and not someone pretending to be him?"

"Its him." answered Daisuke. "I didn't think it could be him but the things that he whispered to me changed my thinking. Trust me, he's the real deal."

"How is that possible?" asked Miyako. "I thought that when you became human all of your demon side was destroyed. How could he possible be alive?"

"To be completely honest, I don't know. That's why I'm going to see if I can get our guest to shed some light on the situation. In the meantime you guys stay here." Daisuke was about to head out until a voice called out to him.

"Now you wait one minute Daisuke." The owner of the voice was none other than Hikari. "There's no way in hell that we're going to let you go and meet that maniac by yourself." It wasn't hard to see that everyone was in agreement with Hikari. "We're going with you."

Daisuke was about to refuse them but the unwavering stares that he was getting stopped him. "Fine then, you win. Come along if you want. Just remember this one thing. When Dai and I was one person we essentially shared one mind. He'll know everything that I knew and he'll use it to his advantage if possible. Whatever he says, don't let it get to you because it may leave you vulnerable to him."

Once getting a nod of understanding from everyone they moved out. Going over to the basement they headed down where heavily chained to the wall was Dai who seemed to be asleep. "You can stop pretending. It's obvious that you're not sleeping." informed an impatient Daisuke.

As he predicted, Dai opened his eyes and looked at all of them with an expressionless stare. "Couldn't trick you could I? Not surprising seeing as how you were once a part of me."

"I think you have that backwards." By Daisuke's tone it was apparent that particular subject was a touchy one. "Here's how it'll go. We're going to ask you some questions and you're going to answer them or else." By Daisuke's tone of voice you could see that he was completely serious. However, Dai didn't show the lease bit concern.

"Or else what? You'll kill me?" It was clear that Dai was taunting them. "We both know that you want to know how I'm here and you won't kill me until then." Surprisingly, Dai had a small smile come across his face. "It's quite funny you know. You refer to me as evil and a monster but you're in no position to call anyone that. Wouldn't you say so Daisuke?" When that was said everyone looked at the aforementioned person in confusion.

"What is he talking about Daisuke?" questioned Hikari.

Before Daisuke could answer, Dai continued. "Oh, that's right. My former weak half never really told you what he did before he met you. What did he tell you again?" Something like training to fight against the evil of the world. Kind of ironic wouldn't you say so my former other half?" Finding something funny, Dai chuckled. "Maybe I should enlighten your friends to what I'm talking about."

What happened next was a complete shock as without warning, Daisuke went over and struck Dai with a vicious punch to the face. "How about telling how you're alive when you should've been dead? At least that's what the prophecy said."

Whether the punch hurt him or not wasn't the case as Dai simply chuckle again. "Don't tell me that you actually believed what those Mystic Scrolls. It wasn't the so called prophecy that set me to be free of you. It was an outside force who did the act. Someone you should know very well. Tell me Daisuke, does the name Shishio ring a bell?"

When that name was said the expression on Daisuke's face changed from irration to one that was between shock and seriousness. "You guys make sure that those restraints are secure. I go something to take care of."

Before any of them could get a word out, Daisuke was already up stairs and out of the basement. "My, I must've struck a nerve." mocked a very amused Dai. "I hope he'll be okay."

-/-/-/-/-

Immediately after leaving the basement, Daisuke headed over his desk and leaned over it in the hopes of gathering himself. Suddenly Daisuke let out a yell before he started to toss various things that were on the desk and didn't stop until there was nothing to throw. _"There's no way that it could be him. There's no way that he could actually be involved."_ Apparently he was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn't notice that he was no longer alone.

"Daisuke, are you all right?" Turning around he saw that he was now joined by his girlfriend, Hikari. By the look of her face she appeared to be worried about her boyfriend.

"What are you doing up here Hikari? Aren't you suppose to be making sure that our guest downstairs stays there?"

"It's being taken cared of." Hikari answered. She knew that Daisuke was trying to change the subject and she wasn't going to fall for it. "What Dai said struck a nerve with you didn't it?" Not seeing a point in denying it Daisuke decided to come clean.

"Striking a nerve would be an understatement." It was a few seconds before Daisuke continued. "I never told you about everything about my past after I became a vampire have I Hikari?" Receiving a nod from her was all that Daisuke needed for an answer. "To say that it isn't all that you expect it to be."

"Come on now, it can't be all that bad." Hikari's opinion was soon changed when she caught the look on Daisuke's face. "What could possibly be so had tha tit would cause you to be this way? Does it somehow involve with that Shishio person that Dai mentioned does it?"

Running a hand through his hair in the hopes of relaxing him Daisuke tried to put what he wanted to say into words. "You already know how I became a vampire but you don't know the story that happen afterwards. What I did when I rose from the dead."

A feeling of concern came over Hikari as she started to go over to him but stopped when Daisuke spoke up again. "Meeting with Katara and being trained you already know. But what I kept hidden from you was my quest for vengeance. The vengeance that I had toward the demon that was responsible for turned me into a vampire." Hikari couldn't hide her surprise when she heard that. "Whenever I had the opportunity I tried to see if I could find him and after a year I finally found him."

Flashback, Fourteen Years Ago…

The night sky was set a blaze. It was so bright that it made it seem as though the sun had risen. The cause for the light was the city of Edo being covered in a blanket of fire. As the inhabitants were running from the flames in the hopes of finding safety, a single individual was actually running to the center of where the flames were spreading. That individual was none other than Daisuke Motomiya.

"_He's near, I can feel it. Somewhere in this created hell is the person that I seek."_ Running through the burning city, Daisuke hoped that he would find the person that he was looking for. This proved to be difficult as he constantly had to avoid the flames and falling debris. _"Things are looking bad. If I stay here for much longer I'll be consumed by the flames. However, I'm willing to allow it to happen if it means that I get _that_ person."_

Heading closer to the center of the city Daisuke came across a group of school buildings. He was going to run pass them but stopped as he sensed something. Cautiously Daisuke entered one of the buildings. By the stuff that was inside it appeared to be a classroom for young children. Putting those thoughts aside Daisuke walked further until he encountered someone. "So, this is where you've been hiding yourself."

It seemed as though he was talking to no one but that wasn't the case. Coming out from the shadows was a man who appeared to be in his thirties. He had whitish gray hair that went halfway down his neck and eyes that were black as night. What he had on was a crimson colored shirt that was tucked into his black jeans. Strapped to his waist was what appeared to be a sword.

"Yes, I have been found. But I need to ask by whom." By his tone it sounded as though the unidentified man wasn't the lease bit concern on being discovered. "With you risking your well being you must have a strong reason in coming after me? Pray tell, what reason could you have to willingly come here?"

"My reason is a strong one." Daisuke didn't even try to hide his hatred for the man in front of him. "Five months ago, in Shinjuku, you were confronted by two police officers. You escaped but not before you killed one of the officers. Does that ring a bell?"

"Oh, now I know who you are. You're the one who I bit in Shinjuku. But how can you be standing here? As I recall you were on the verge of dieing as your partner forced me to retreat." Stopping for a second the unidentified man gave Daisuke the once over before he actually smiled. "I see now. You've been turned. You're just like me. How can this be? I don't remember ever siring you."

"Let's just say that unknowingly my former partner gave me a second chance at life, in a matter of speaking. Also, I'm nothing like you." Stretching his right arm outward, a collapsible sword came out which Daisuke grabbed. "Now, let's get to the part where I slice you to shreds, Shishio."

Answering Daisuke's challenge with action instead of words the person now known as Shishio unsheathed his sword and prepared himself to fight. For sometime, neither one moved as they stood where they were. It was as though they were trying to study on what the other was capable of. They were so focus on one another that they took no mind to the fire that was slowly consuming the building and the flaming debris that was falling all around them.

Without so much as a word, the two charged at one another. Neither of them held anything back as they fully attended to end the other's undead life. Despite that both of them were holding nothing back the two of them couldn't get any real advantage. As they fought, Shishio figured that it was a good opportunity to strike a conversation.

"As much as I hate to admit it but you're pretty good." Daisuke simply continued fighting. "Maybe instead of fighting one another we should work together. What do you say to my proposal?"

When he was asked that question it seemed to anger Daisuke even further as his assault became even more forceful. "It'll be a cold day in hell before I join forces with you." Even after receiving such a response, Shishio didn't show any signs of anger.

"Do you think that just because you have a soul it makes you better than anyone else?" The question came so out of the blue that Daisuke nearly halted his attack. "What? Did you actually think that I couldn't sense that you had one? I have for more experience of what we are compared to you. After realizing what you were I was able to feel out that sickening trace of your previous humanity."

Suddenly, Shishio's face went into vampire form. With his facial change so did his assault as it seemed to become even stronger. _"Damn it. He's stronger than he was a moment ago."_ thought Daisuke as he did all he could to protect himself from his adversary's attacks. "Maybe things would be different if I paid more attention to Katara's fighting exercises."

"Face the truth." voiced Shishio. "You may not want to believe it but you can't deny that the two of us…" With a heavy swing of his sword, Shishio managed to cut Daisuke's left arm. Right after that happen Daisuke's face also changed into its vampire form. "..are a like."

Blinded by rage, Daisuke charged forward and was actually able to drive his shoulder into Shishio's gut. Allowing the momentum take them, the two of them went crashing through the window and to the outside. Letting go of his sword, Daisuke got on top of his stunned adversary and started to rain down punches on him.

"I'm nothing like you!" shouted Daisuke as he continued with his assault. 'I may be a creature like you but we're nothing a like." He continued with the punches for another minute until he caught the snide smile on Shishio's face. Becoming somewhat cautious he created som distance between him and his enemy.

With that same smile on his face, Shishio pulled himself back to his feet. Wiping the blood that was coming out of his mouth he let a small chuckle. "Very impressive I must say. I wasn't expecting such force from someone so new to what he is." Stopping for a moment he looked around his surroundings as it was being nearly consumed by the on going flames. "And about us not being the same. You might be mistaken."

Daisuke was so caught off guard by that he halted any thought of resuming the fight. "What in the world are you talking about? We're not the same."

"Is that so? Then how would you explain what happen here tonight?" The confusion on Daisuke's face was all Shishio needed to know to continue. "We're both willing to do whatever it takes to do what we need to do and not caring about those who may get in our way." Daisuke was going to deny the claim but was interrupted. "Did it ever cross your mind on why I was inside that school building?"

Starting to wonder that question himself, Daisuke started to think it over. When the answer finally came to him his eyes went wide in shock. "Don't tell me that you didn't-" The twisted smile that grew bigger on Shishio's face was all the answer that he needed to confirm his suspicions.

"I did. Underneath that building were all the students and teacher tied up and gagged, being unable to escape or cry for help." The look of despair on Daisuke's face greatly pleased Shishio and he only continued to drive it in even further. "If only there was someone would've came along and save them. Too bad you couldn't be that someone wouldn't you say so?"

That seem to be it for Daisuke as all the will that he had to fight was immediately gone. Having felt like he accomplished all that he wanted, Shishio put his fallen sword back in its sheath and started to walk off but not before saying one more thing before departing. "Maybe this'll teach you to not to think with your head and not act on your emotions."

With that the villainous vampire left. Daisuke didn't even attempt to go after him. He just fell to his knees and stared with unfocused eyes he watched what was left of the school building burn to the ground. _"I'm so sorry. Please forgive me for not saving you when I could've."_ The grief became so great that Daisuke put his hands over his face and allowed the tears that were held back to spill out freely.

End of Flashback…

"When I finally managed to regain some of my composure I got out of the city without being spotted. I soon returned to where Katara was training me without her knowing a thing. Or maybe she did but decided to keep quiet about it, who knows. All I know is that day changed my life." As Daisuke talked, Hikari listened intently.

"Even to this day I wonder if I could do that even all over again would I have ignored those helpless school children and teacher or go after Shishio." It was obvious that Daisuke was getting emotion about the incident. "Am I really like him?" He was so consumed with the subject that he hardly noticed when Hikari came over and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Now you listen to me Daisuke Motomiya." The tone that Hikari was using made it clear that she wanted Daisuke's complete attention on what he was going to say. "I may not know everything about your past and I'm not going to pretend that I do. But what I do know is that you're nothing like this Shishio person or the demon that's tied up in the basement." By his expression it looked as though Daisuke wasn't all that convinced with what his girlfriend was saying so Hikari continued on.

"You've done so many things simply because it was the right thing to do even if it meant that you had to suffer because of it." Wanting to somehow put more important to what she was trying to do; Hikari leaned closer to Daisuke to where she was leaning against his back and wrapped her arms around him. "For me you're nobler and down right more good than most of the people I know. Don't you ever forget that."

Not even trying to pretend that her words didn't have an effect, Daisuke turned around while still in Hikari's grasp and began to tenderly stroke her cheek. "Thank you Hikari for your kind words. I've never always told you this but I can't imagine where I'd be if we haven't met each other again at Samuel's party." That moment brought a small smile to both of their faces. "We've had our problems here and there but we've managed to get pass them." As Daisuke continued to talk he was slowly leaning towards Hikari.

"Despite all of the abilities that I had while a vampire and all the good that I tried to do with them I believe that meeting up with you again and becoming closer was the best thing to come from them." Leaning even closer the two closed their eyes and began to kiss one another. They continued this for a while until someone interrupted.

"Uh, excuse me." By the doorway was Daisuke's daughter, Serenity and she had a little smile of amusement on her face. Once noticing her, both Daisuke and Hikari broke away from one another, each of them with a heavy blush on their faces. Noticing their discomfort Serenity decided to push the embarrassment a bit further. "Hey, don't mind me. Continue with what you were doing as if I wasn't here." That comment got the desire affect as the couple became even more embarrassed. "Relax you guys, I'm just hear to give you a report about how my patrol went, that's all."

Going over Serenity sat on the edge of the desk and waited until her father and Hikari were able to compose themselves. "Okay, you came to give us a report so go ahead and tell us what you got to tell us." instructed Daisuke who had managed to get rid of the blush from his face.

"There's really nothing to report." Serenity calmly answered. "There had been the occasional vampire attack but nothing too serious as I simply stopped them and dusted them with a stake to the heart. As for finding any leads on whose been sending your girlfriend those 'gifts', I'm afraid to say that there isn't any."

When Serenity mentioned the last part, Daisuke and Hikari gave each other side glances which didn't go unnoticed. "What's the deal you two? Is there something that you need to tell me?"

-/-/-/-/-

"You guys are really pathetic you know that?" In the basement Ken Miyako, Mimi and James were keeping watch over Dai who was still chained up. "Do you actually think something like this will hold me?"

"It's doing a pretty good job so far." retorted Miyako. Saying that made it clear that having to be in the same room with this monster was an unpleasant experience for the four of them would be an understatement.

"Trust me, it's only a matter of time until I get out of his confinements and have free reign to do what I want." He then half heartedly tried to get out of the chains but was futile. "Each of you is some real sorry excuses for defenders of good. Can you imagine what I'd do if I were to escape?" It was then that Dai's focus went to one particular person. "I believe that one of you already has a good idea on what could happen. Isn't that right Mimi?"

When her name was said, Mimi looked at Dai with a somewhat tentative stare. "Don't tell me that you've forgotten. Remember the last time I showed up you made contact with me and that pesky power of premonition of yours kicked in. Even though you only got a pretty good idea on what I wanted to do." Recalling those images sent a shiver through Mimi's body as it was something that she wasn't too fond in remembering. "That proves that you're much as a freak as I always thought that you were."

"Now you wait one damn minute." exclaimed a not so happy Miyako. "You're in no position to be calling anyone a freak and that includes my cousin."

If Dai was intimidated by Miyako he didn't show it. "Please, I think that I have the right to call someone a freak. After years of being able to only watch but never acted gives me an understanding on the subject." By how he said it, the subject was one that extremely angered Dai.

"Face it Mimi, the only reason that Daisuke and the others accepted you was because they felt sorry. The same could be said about your boyfriend. Why else would someone what to be associated with someone like you?"

Even though she tried to hide it, Mimi couldn't pretend that Dai's words didn't hurt. Becoming angered by how her cousin was being talked to, Miyako wanted to knock out their tied up captive but was being held back by Ken. She was going to escape from his grasp and continue with what she set out to do, only for someone to beat her to the punch.

Out of nowhere, James entered the fray and delivered a kick to Dai's head that was so strong that it sent him reeling. "You say another bad thing about Mimi I swear I'll beat you within an inch of your undead life." The sheer anger that was behind his words were so out of character that everyone were slightly taken back by it.

"Mimi may not be like your advantage girl but who cares. What makes her different is what makes her special. I believe that I speak for everyone when I say that we didn't accept her because we felt sorry for her. It was because that we admired her." Turning away from Dai, James sent his sights on his girlfriend. "Even with the burden that she has because of her power, she is able to stay so happy and carefree. In a way that might make her stronger than any of us could ever be."

James' words had the desire affect as Mimi couldn't help but to give him a look of gratitude. Not trusting her ability to talk at the moment she mouthed a 'thank you' which he responded with a nod of the head. Before anything could really start up someone broke the mood.

"Oh, please. That's enough with all this emotional crap." muttered a sickened Dai. "If this keeps up it might kill me." It actually appeared as though Dai was disgusted when he said those words.

"And we can't have that can we?" From the basement stairs was Daisuke with Hikari following close behind. Walking down the stairs the two were now standing in front of Dai. "We can't have you dieing now. Not until we get the information that we're looking for that is. Of course there's no guarantee that there won't be any roughing up along the way." In somewhat daring move, Daisuke lend over to where his face was inches away from Dai's. "Now are you going to tell us what we want or not?"

The response that Dai gave them was quick and direct as he spot right in Daisuke's face. Wiping the spit from his face Daisuke looked at his darker half with an undetermined expression. "Funny, that was really funny." Reaching into his pocket he pulled out a small bottle containing a clear liquid. "You're probably thirsty. How about you have some water?"

Tipping the bottle to the side the liquid landing on Dai's right leg and he immediately moved it away as there was some slight smoke rising from where the liquid landed. "Oh, I'm sorry about that. I mistakenly brought holy water." Switching from the semi humorous manner, Daisuke became serious. "Either you give us what we want or you're going to be drowning in this stuff. It's up to you."

Instead of answering in a snide way, Dai seemed to give in for the time being. "As you probably already know, Shishio was responsible for us being separated. Quite a fascinating way it was done I might add and no, I'm not about to tell you how it was done." he answered the last part as he new what the next question was going to be. "I wouldn't want you to try and put us back together."

"Trust me, reuniting with you is the furthest thing from my mind." spoke Daisuke with a tone that didn't hide the distain of the suggestion. "So you're saying that Shishio came to Kyoto just to separate me from my vampire half? I don't know whether to kill him or thank him."

"Come on, do you think that he came here just to do that? He's been here for the last few months, doing what he wanted without you having a clue. For example, he had a recent experience in store protection. Reminds you of something similar? That question appeared to be directed towards the women in the room.

"That can't be." Hikari quickly rebuttal. "The person that was behind that whole thing was someone named Xanatos. We try to find out more about the person but found nothing. Are you saying that it was this Shishio guy that was behind it all and was doing it under a pseudonym?"

"You got it in the first try. Apparently you got a brain to go along with that body of yours." Not really liking the look that Dai was giving her, Hikari almost instinctively got closer to Daisuke. "Anyways, when the two of us became unconscious from the spell I was taken by Shishio where I stayed until I recovered my strength. Also, like with the spell I won't tell you where he's hiding. Most likely he already has switched hideouts so it'll be pointless to ask."

On the surface Daisuke had a neutral look on his face but his friends were thinking something. "Then if that's all you can give us there isn't any point to keep you around." Tipping the bottle of holy water he was about to pour the entire liquid out until Dai spoke up again.

"Do you think it's wise to kill me?" That question caught Daisuke's attention as he stopped with the potential lethal dowsing. "Just because I won't tell you those two things, it doesn't mean that I don't have other vital information that you may find interesting. Like information about the Takenaka Corporation's higher ups."

That bit of information caught everyone's immediate interest as they wondered if what their captive said was the truth. Giving the situation the benefit of the doubt, Daisuke put the bottle away. "We need to discuss this before we do anything. Let's go upstairs you guys so we can talk it over." He was about to head up but was stopped when Mimi spoke up.

"But Daisuke, if we're upstairs who'll make sure that Dai doesn't escape?" questioned Ken.

"Don't worry about that. We got that covered. You can come down now." he shouted to the top of the stairs.

Walking down the stairs was none other than Serenity and it was hard to tell what she thought about the situation as she had a blank expression that was similar to the one that her father had moments ago. "Go ahead and have your group talk. I'll stay here to watch over the 'guest'."

With the situation seemingly under control the group headed upstairs leaving Serenity with a still chained up Dai. Neither one said a word as they just stared at one another with looks of disgust.

-/-/-/-/-

"Please tell me that you're not actually believing what he's said Daisuke." Immediately after going upstairs Daisuke and the others got into the discussion about what Dai told them and Miyako was quickly arguing against what the former vampire was thinking of doing.

"Believe me, I trust him as far as I can throw him but we have to look at this on wider scale. Let's face it, we haven't been able to find anything about the higher ups, let alone who they really are. If what Dai says is true then maybe it could help us to get an edge against them. Isn't that good enough to risk it?"

The words that Daisuke spoke with managed to sink in with everyone as they considered the option of listening to what Dai had to say. However, there was still some uncertainty. "Why don't we forget about the possible information seeing as how we got another problem to deal with." reminded Ken. "Like this Shishio character. He's been the one pulling the strings behind this whole thing so he should probably be our main concern. What can you tell us about him Daisuke? By what Dai said it sounds as though you know who we'll be dealing with."

With the focus on him, Daisuke looked away as he didn't know if he could tell his story a second time in one day. It wasn't until he felt a hand that belonged to Hikari on his shoulder did he feel the strength to tell his friends what they had the right to know. "All right you guys. You have the right to know who this Shishio person is. But believe me, what I'm going to tell you will shock you."

* * *

I bet none of you expected what happen in this chapter. Remember, I did say a while back that Dai would probbaly reappearing in this series and this was a good way for him to return. Also, I hoped that I did a good enough job in making Dai as a sadistic character. 

As for the whole Shishio being the one turning Daisuke into a vampire and causing problems for him and his friends, that was something that just came to me. Originally I plan to have the vampire that turned Daisuke to be a no name vamp who got killed shortly after siring the main character. However, I changed my mind after I thought that it would be a good idea to have him still 'alive' so that he could become a main bad guy during this part of the series.

I know that this chapter may have left some of you hanging on wanting to know what happens but I promise to have the next chapter up on within the week, maybe as early as Thursday. No guarantees though. Until then, please go ahead and leave a review about what you thought about this chapter and how the series is going.


	5. Discovery & Escape

Here it is, the next chapter to the thsi story and the continuing arc involving Dai. If you liked how the previous chapter went then you most likely will like this one. There'll be more insight on what's going on with the story and what's to come later on. Now, go ahead and read the chapter and like with the previous times, I don't own digimon.  
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_The beginning of knowledge is the discovery of something we do not understand.  
Frank Herbert (1920 - 1986)_

Chapter 5:  
Discovery  
& Escape

"Master Shishio, I got urgent news for you." In an undisclosed location was a man came running into a large room where sitting on a fabulous throne like chair was none other than Shishio. "My master, I've received word about your newly acquired servant."

When he heard that Shishio became completely focus on his follower. "Due pray tell, what has become of that young troublemaker. Was he able to do what he was suppose to do?"

"I'm afraid not. He indeed made contact but was captured and is currently being held at the main target's home." When given the information Shishio actually seemed to be amused by it. "May I ask master on what will you do about this? If they are able to get him to talk it may result in problems later on." Shishio's response was a simply nod of the head. "Should some problem solvers be sent out to make sure that nothing is said?"

"Set a group of them to the location but advice them to not kill anyone. Have them simply bring him back here with only a moderate amount of damage. Anyone who fails to follow those instructions will suffer greatly because of it." Understanding what his master was telling him, the servant hurried out to inform the others on their mission. "So the time will soon be upon us and I have to say that I can't wait to see what will happen because of it."

-/-/-/-/-

"Isn't this something?" asked Dai. "I never expected you to be here. Boy, don't I feel special."

"Why don't you just shut up?" questioned Serenity who wasn't in the mood to have a conversation with the vampire. "I'm only doing this as a favor and to make sure that you don't escape."

"Does it look like I'm going to be going anywhere?" Driving his point further Dai slightly tugged at the chains that were holding him. "Besides, you shouldn't really use that kind of tone with your father."

Immediately after that was said Serenity gave him a glare that would make any average person cowered in fear. "You are not my father. As much as I hate to say it but the person upstairs is my father and there's nothing that connects me to you."

"Now who are you trying to fool here, me or you?" Even with the chains securely holding him Dai pushed himself to his feet. "You say that there's nothing that connects us. But where do you think your enhance abilities came from? It certainly didn't come from my former human half. You can't deny it my daughter. We're more a like than you realize. We kill all those who're close to us. Take your foster mother, Rowan for example."

When that name was said Serenity instantly became enraged. Going over she grabbed Dai by the collar so that he was looking directly at her face. "You shut your fucking mouth. You don't get to say her name." Calming down slightly she shoved the demented vampire back against the beam that he was chained to. "I don't know what you're trying to do but I had nothing to do with her death."

"Is that so? That's some poor memory you have there. As I recall she got shot because she tried to help you. That's of course after she was captured and tortured by the Takenaka Corporation simply because she helped you to escape from them."

The not so pleasant reminder really shook Serenity up as she backed away with her facing the ground. "It wasn't my fault." she said, mostly to herself but it sounded like she was trying to convince herself with little success. "I didn't mean for it to happen."

"But it did happen, didn't it?" Dai quickly retorted. "Face it Serenity, you wish to have people close to you only for them to leave you. Let's not forget about your real mother, Katara." The mentioning of that subject Serenity flinch. "You can try to lie to yourself but we both know that behind all that rebellious attitude is a little girl wanting her mommy and daddy.. Unfortunately that'll never happen as all those who you come into contact with suffer."

"Shut up!" yelled Serenity as she wished to hear him anymore. To her dismay Dai continued with his taunting.

"Sooner or later everyone will leave you. I wonder how long it'll be until your aunt Jun realizes what you really are and leaves you to."

Dai's words were having their desired affect as Serenity didn't know what to think or do as she had her head in her hands and quietly muttering something. While that was going on Dai was smiling like an idiot. It was unfortunate for him that someone decided to enter the scene. "What's going on here?"

Walking down from the stairs was Hikari who was no doubt confused about what she just walked into. Ignoring the smiling Dai she went over to the shaking Serenity. "Are you okay? What happen?" When she got no response she reached over to Serenity. However, when she made contact with her, Serenity immediately backed away.

"Don't touch me!" shouted Serenity. "If you wish to stay alive you'll stay away from me. You don't want to wine up like Rowan did."

Slowly it dawned on Hikari to what was wrong with Serenity. Not allowing this bit of information to deter her she again tried to reach over to the troubled young woman. Like before Serenity tried to back away but Hikari didn't allow her to get away as she managed to grab her arm. Serenity tried to free herself but due to her present state she wasn't to do so.

"I don't know what that bastard Dai told you but you had nothing to do with Rowan's death." By what Hikari could tell it appeared that her words weren't really getting through. "Remember, I was there when that unfortunate even took place and I recall that she willing gave her life so that yours could continue." Right after those words were said Serenity flinched slightly that didn't go unnoticed.

"I may not know everything that there is to know about what has happen to you but I know that there's goodness in your heart and that all those who truly know you would say the same." Thankfully it seemed like Hikari's words had gotten through to Serenity started to calm down.

"Oh, how touching." muttered Dai in mocked amusement. "If my heart was still beating I'd be getting that warm feeling inside. Fortunately I've been freed from that pathetic human emotion." Looking at the two woman in the basement with him he couldn't see Serenity's face but he could see Hikari's as she was giving him a cold glare. "What's with the look? Did I happen to strike a nerve?" Dai mocked. "What are you going to do? Give me a heavy scolding?"

Believing that Serenity would be okay, Hikari went over to Dai but kept her distance. "You're a real piece of work you know that? With you being unable to hurt anyone physically you go for the next best thing." On how Hikari was talking it came as somewhat of a surprise as she was being so calm about it. "Using the memories that you got while being a part of Daisuke you're attacking whatever doubts we may have. Causing us to lose our focus and weaken us so that you could hurt us where it counted."

"Hey, I do what I can." shrugged Dai. "Besides, you guys have so much crap going on in your lives that it gives me plenty of material to work with."

"That's funny if you think about it as it wasn't that long ago that you were nothing more than a nagging voice that was inside Daisuke's head." When she said that Hikari could see a scowl come across Dai's face even if was only for a moment but it was there. "It must've been hell for you. See all of the good that Daisuke has done and you being unable to do nothing but look on. Watching on but never being able to act on your demonic urges."

"Hell is putting it likely to what I had to go through." admitted Dai with venom in his voice. "Having to watch all those sickening good deeds made me ill. If I wasn't already dead I would've killed myself. But there was something that I and the person that was my former prison saw in the same view." Dropping the anger he switched to an eerie calm. "And that was you, Hikari." Not expecting that Hikari nearly stumbled but stopped herself.

"Out of all the pathetic people that Daisuke has come across after becoming a vampire you are perhaps the one person that he holds dearer than anyone else. As a result it has opened my eyes to you." Looking right at Hikari, he made sure that her eyes were looking at his. "Imagine how much suffering I could put Daisuke through if I were to have my way with you. There are so many ideas that I don't know which one to choose. Like, I don't know if I should rape you before or after I kill you. Do you have any preferences?"

Not allowing the demented vampire's words to affect her, Hikari remained steady. "You're one sick vamp, you know that? But I shouldn't be all that surprise. Wanting to torment others is how you get your rocks off seeing as how you're nothing but a pawn in whatever game that Shishio's playing."

It was apparent that Dai didn't take to kindly to the title that Hikari gave him as he glared at the girl with absolute distain. "Now you listen to me little girl. I'm nobody's pawn. Shishio may have been the one to help set me free from my hellish prison with those Yin-Yang demons but in no way that I'm going to become someone's lapdog." Dai stopped with his tirade when he noticed the expression on Hikari's face. "What in the hell are you smiling about?"

"Oh, it's nothing. It's nothing at all." Walking away from the chained up vampire, Hikari went over to Serenity, who was slowly recovering from her recent emotional breakdown. "Are you up to staying here and keep watch on him?"

"Yeah, I think so." Though still somewhat shakey Serenity seemed capable of handling the assignment. "Go on, I can manage. He won't get to me again." Understanding what she meant Hikari turned around to head back upstairs but stopped when Serenity called out to her. "Before you go I just want to say thank you. I appreciate what you said." Acknowledging the young woman's words with the nod of the head, Hikari left to rejoin the others.

When she got upstairs she saw that Daisuke was answering the questions that the others had after hearing about the past between him and Shishio but stopped when Hikari reentered the scene. "So, did you happen to get anything useful from our guest?"

"Actually, I did. I believe I got information that'll prove to be very useful." an almost cocky Hikari answered. "Do any of you happen to know anything about Yin-Yang demons? Dai inadvertently blurted it out."

"I think I have heard of them." mentioned James. "Shortly after the demons that were doing their whole protection scam I read numerous books about all sorts of demons. By the way, number of demons in existence is staggering. It still amazes me that there's so many-" James stopped babbling when he noticed the looks that he was getting from the others.

"But getting back to what I was trying to say. As I was going through the books I came across something called Yin-Yang demons. They're two demons considered as one and usually are siblings. Never been known as being that bad, they're really been known as just being mischievous. They usually split things or people into their opposites. Split light and dark, happy and sad or in this case Daisuke's good side and his dark side, namely his human and his demon side."

No one said anything as they allowed what James said to sink in. It wasn't until Ken asked a question did the talking resume. "Are you saying that these Yin-Yang demons did this just for fun?"

"I don't think so. They usually only do their tricks for a day or two. Since it's been over a week since the separation took place it's safe to say that someone is pulling their strings." James stopped as he thought of something. "Now, I'm not certain about this but I believe that there's a ritual that if done correctly it'll allow the person to have control them and make them do whatever they want. Apparently Shishio was able to do the ritual and used them to use their ability to separate the demon from Daisuke's humanity. For what reason, who knows."

"The reason isn't important at the moment." informed Daisuke with determination in his voice. "What matters is can you break the control that's been placed on the demons?"

"Perhaps I could. I'd need to go through the books to find a way to break the ritual. It'll take sometime though. Maybe if I had help it could go faster."

"Fine then, if it quickens the process. Mimi, you and the others will help James in looking for a way to break the ritual. As for me, I'll be out searching for where Shishio could be hiding and deal with him if possible." Heading to the weapons' cabinet Daisuke grabbed a few items. Not giving his friends the chance to argue he headed for the door.

He got about two feet from the door when it literally exploded. Adding to the already confusing moment a couple of smoke bombs were thrown inside. Soon the entire place was covered in a thick smoke that made it impossible to see anything. "Hikari, Ken, where are you guys at?"

A variety of shouts could be heard but where they were coming from exactly was impossible. As Daisuke tried to find the others he heard shouts of surprise followed shortly by what sounded like a body hitting the ground. Becoming worried about the well being of his friends, Daisuke quicken his search for them. "Come on you guys; say something so I can find you."

Stumbling through the smoke Daisuke happen to trip over something which caused him to fall to the ground. Looking to what caused him to fall he saw that it was the prone body of one of his friends, to be more precise, it was Hikari. Placing a hand lightly on her face he let out a sigh of relief when he realized that she was just unconscious. Finally the smoke was starting to fade away and it was then that Daisuke saw what had become of his friends.

Throughout the room were his friends, who like Hikari were unconscious on the ground. The reason behind their current condition was also discovered as there was several men dressed din black and it was obvious that they weren't there for a social call. Daisuke was about to ask what was going on but was struck hard in the back of the head that resulted in him becoming unconscious like the others.

-/-/-/-/-

Sometime Later…

"Damn it, what the hell hit me?" Once regaining consciousness Daisuke and the others tried to figure out what happen. "Within five minutes we get attack and we're taken cared of like we were nothing." recalled Daisuke with embarrassment in his voice. "Let they didn't seem to take anything and none of us appears to be hurt."

"He's right." remarked Mimi. "They had the perfect opportunity to take us out if they wanted to but they didn't. Why would they do all of this and not do anything to us? What could they wanted to do if it didn't involve us?"

Letting a curse, Daisuke hurried to the basement with his confused friends following close behind. "What's up Daisuke?" asked Ken as he hurried after the former vampire. "Why are you in such a hurry?"

"I have a hunch on what those people were after." In no time they had reached the basement. "And unfortunately my hunch was correct." There on the basement floor was an unconscious Serenity. However, what worried them more was where Dai was chained up was nothing more than a support beam surrounded by broken pieces of chain. "Something tells me that things just got a whole lot worse for us."

-/-/-/-/-

"We've captured the cargo. It's time to return to base." Speeding through the streets of Kyoto a black van was heading to an undisclosed location. Inside the van were the men dressed in black that attacked Daisuke's place and the cargo that they were talking about was an unconscious Dai. "The sooner we get back to the base the better. I don't want to be this close to this thing than I need to."

"Relax, he isn't going anywhere. He was pumped with so much tranquilizers that it'll keep him out for hours." If to prove what was said to be the truth the guy smacked Dai in the face a few times which got no reaction. "See, he's completely conked out. There's nothing to worry about."

Unfortunately for the man, right after he said those words, Dai's hand came up and gripped the man's neck tightly. "It seems you spoke too soon." With a quick twist of the wrist the man's neck was snapped, resulting in his death. Letting go of the now lifeless man, Dai turned his attention to the other man.

"To be honest, I should be thanking you. If it wasn't for you I may have never gotten freed from my captors." Believing that he was going to be spared the man began to relax. "As thanks I'll give you all a quick death." Changing his face into its vamp form Dai lunged over and sank his teeth into the man's neck. Shortly after doing so the van started to swerve before heading straight for a lamp post.

-/-/-/-/-

"Do you see anything at all?" Right after discovering that Dai had escaped Daisuke hurried into his car so he could go search for his former demon half. He wasn't the only one as Hikari was accompanying him. Also, Serenity was helping as she went searching in a different direction.

"I see nothing, nothing at all." That was the answer that Hikari had been giving for the last half hour. "What are we doing Daisuke? We don't even know if we're searching in the right area."

"I know that Hikari. I'm completely guessing on where they could've taken that bastard demon." Driving through many of Kyoto's streets Daisuke hoped to find some trace of who they were looking for but the search was proving to be a futile one. "If only we had a clue on where they could be." Suddenly Daisuke's cell phone began to ring.

Turning on the phone he started to talk to whoever was on the other line. "This is Daisuke. Were you able to find anything?" Apparently he knew who he was talking to. Even though Hikari couldn't hear what was being said she could tell by the shock expression on Daisuke's face it wasn't all that good. "Would you please repeat that, Serenity?"

-/-/-/-/-

In another part of the city, on the rooftop of a building was Serenity who was relaying over the phone to Daisuke about a particular incident that was happening before her eyes. "On the other side of town from where you are an accident has taken place. From what I can see there are definitely some fatalities." On the other end of the conversation Daisuke asked what that had to do with their current situation.

"I'm getting to that. The accident involves a van with the people matching the ones that attacked us earlier. What's strange is that even though they all died it wasn't because of the crash." Peering down to the scene of the accident Serenity could see the mangled bodies of those who earlier that day ambushed them.

"It seems as though they were killed before and moments after the accident took place. As for the 'guest' that they took with them, he's wasn't with them. Meaning that he got away during the commotion and that's not everything that's unusual about what I'm seeing."

Being sure not to draw any attention, Serenity got closer to the scene. On the side of the van that wasn't smashed up were the words, 'IT'S TIME TO MEET THE FAMILY' written in what she could tell the blood of the people who died in the van.

"What do you think it means Daisuke?" Even though she was on Daisuke's side, it would be quite sometime until she would call him dad. "And please tell me it isn't what I think it means."

-/-/-/-/-

"I'm afraid it does." answered Daisuke who was trying to keep his composure. "Listen very carefully to what I'm going to tell you Serenity. Get to Jun as quick as possible and stay with her until its safe." Apparently getting no argument from Serenity the phone call came to an end.

Parking the car as quickly as possible, Daisuke got out but leaned down to talk with Hikari. "Drive back to my place and help the others get the spell working. Tell them what's happening." Closing the door he started to head out but stopped when Hikari called out to him.

"Where are you going Daisuke? Do you even have a clue on where to start looking?"

"My parents' home is a good place to start." Daisuke answered without turning around. "Dai practically spelled it out. He's going to try and do the most painful thing imaginable to me." When Daisuke looked over his shoulder to Hikari she could see that his eyes held the intensity like they usually did but also a trace of worry. "Dai's going to try and kill my family."

"Oh, my God." muttered Hikari as she was shocked by what she heard. She didn't even stop Daisuke when he ran off. She just got into the driver's seat of the car and drove back to where the others were.

Going as fast as his legs would allow Daisuke hurried to his parents' place. _"Let me get there in time. Oh please God let me get there in time."_ Those thoughts kept going through Daisuke's head as he quickened his pace hoping that he wouldn't be late.

-/-/-/-/-

"I'm coming, hold on." shouted Anzu Motomiya when the knocking at the door continued. Opening the door she became happy when it was revealed that the person on the other side was Daisuke. "Hello son, it's good to see you. May I ask for the reason for this unexpected visit?"

"There's something important that I need to tell you guys. Is dad here?" When he got a yes from his mother he went in. "Good because the both of you should hear this." Seeing the seriousness in her son's eyes, Anzu hurried to get her husband.

Unfortunately for her she didn't see that Daisuke quietly locked the door. It got even worse as Daisuke's face went vamp. "Now I get to have some fun." stated the person that was revealed to be actually Dai.

* * *

Isn't that a bitch? I'm not that fond of living a chapter in a cliffhanger but I go ahead and do one with mine. We got to see more of Dai's cruel side with the moment that he and Serenity as well as the back and forther banter that he had with Hikari. 

As for the next time I update, like with the last few previous updates I'll most likely have it on within two to three days. That is of course if I don't get tied up with school and other things. Anyways, see ya until next time and go ahead and leave a review if you don't mind.


	6. Facing Thy Self

Took a bit longer than I expected but here it is, the final part to my 'Danger Comes From Within' story. This chapter will wrap up the whole Dai arc that took place and set up for what's to come later on. Now, that is enough of me blahing, go read the chapter and like usual, I don't own digimon.

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* * *

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_It's all right letting yourself go as long as you can let yourself back.  
Mick Jagger (1943 - )_

Chapter 6:  
Facing Thy Self

"Has there been any progress made so far?" Getting only shake of the head from everybody was all that James needed for an answer. "Damn, that wasn't the answer that I wanted to hear."

"Then why don't you do something about it?" exclaimed an irritated Miyako. "You're the one who told us about this whole thing. I thought you said that you already read about it. So why don't you just tell us how to do the ritual?"

"Don't you think I would've told you if I knew?" James replied with a trace of irritation in his voice. "I've already told you that I only read bits and pieces about it so I know nothing more than the cliff notes. If we were to do the ritual with just what I know at the moment it could result in even more problems for us." James' anger was growing by the minute and it may have boiled over if it wasn't for Mimi giving him a comforting embrace. "Let's just keep searching and hope we find what we need."

Continuing with the research none of them found anything for a while until Ken spoke up. "I believe I've found what we were looking for." Passing the book that he was looking through around he started explaining what he read. "What's in that book is a spell that can summon the Yin-Yang demons here. It sounds like a simply thing to perform but there was some other things that I read that are not good."

Currently having the book in her possession, Mimi glanced through it and when she found the part that Ken was referring to a look of dread came across her face. "It states that after a human is split if one of the halves is killed then both halves will die." Not wanting to read anymore she tossed the book across the table. "What it means is that if Daisuke kills Dai or vice versa then they'll both die."

"Simply put, yes." answered James. "Let's just hope that Daisuke doesn't run into his other half before we can tell him about our latest discovery."

Right after those words were spoke the front door opened and Hikari came bursting in. "Daisuke went after Dai. He told me to come here to tell you and to help get the ritual ready."

Everyone simply looked at one another with unpleasant expressions on their faces. "You had to jinx it didn't you?" muttered Miyako.

-/-/-/-/-

"Why are you doing this?" asked Anzu Motomiya for the unknown time. Both her and husband, Hiroto were tied to chairs and the one responsible behind it was what appeared to be their son. "What is the meaning of this Daisuke?"

Instead of answering 'Daisuke' began to laugh but in a maniacal way. "Now, when did I ever say that I was ever your son?" To elaborate he changed his face into its vampire form. The wide eyed expressions on the Motomiya parents faces was all that Dai needed to know.

"That's right; I'm the thing that was inside your then undead son. I go by the name Dai. Remember it as you'll be sent to the afterlife when I'm done having my fun with the both of you." Coming closer, Dai was on the verge of sinking his fangs into Mrs. Motomiya's neck when someone came bursting through the door. That person was none other than the actual Daisuke.

"Get the hell away from them!" Without caring about his own safety he charged and putting as much force behind it as possible Daisuke drove his shoulder into Dai that sent him crashing through a window and to the ground below. Daisuke quickly went to his parents and helped to free them from their restraints. "Are you two okay?"

"Yeah, we're fine." answered Mr. Motomiya. "Mind telling us what in the world is going on?"

"I'll explain everything later. For now stay here until its safe." Without even waiting for their response Daisuke ran out of the apartment and went to where Dai had fallen. The place was a small parking garage that had a few cars inside. Being very cautious Daisuke went in but wasn't able to find anything. That would change when he heard the familiar sound of someone laughing.

"I must say that I was caught off guard by your sudden appearance." The voice obviously belonged to Dai but it was impossible to find where he was as the echo of the parking garage made it seem as though it was coming from every direction.

Becoming even more concern Daisuke reached into his jacket and pulled out a wooden stake. "Well, I couldn't help but show up. After all, you did leave a calling card of sorts." He was of course was referring to the message that was written on the side of the destroyed van.

"Ah, that was a good time. Even though they were the ones who freed me from your grasp I couldn't help but sink my teeth into their necks." The sound of hurried footsteps was heard but couldn't be identified on where they were going. "I was planning on doing something more spectacular for your dear parents before I was rudely interrupted."

"I could say that I was sorry but I would be lying." Daisuke tried to use his training to locate Dai and it was working as he was getting closer to finding where his former demonic half was hiding. When he finally was able to locate him it couldn't happen at a better time as he barely avoided the on coming attack by Dai from behind.

"Impressive. Apparently becoming human hasn't lessoned your fighting ability." Again Dai tried to attack Daisuke but once again it was to no avail as Daisuke got out of harm's way.

"You should know. You were after all was a part of me when I was being trained by Katara." exclaimed Daisuke all the while being prepared to use the stake in his hand if necessary.

"Let's talk about Katara. She was someone that I would love to sink my teeth into, in more ways than one." Dai's snide remark caused Daisuke to become angered about how his former teacher was being talked about. _"If only he knew the truth. But his reaction has given me an idea."_ "Speaking of women, let's talk about the ones that are in your group." Dai let out a sly whistle. "Those three are a feast for the eyes."

The words that Dai was saying were getting to Daisuke but he was managing to keep his anger in check. "That they are. They'd probably be even more pleasing if they were kicking your ass."

"That would be an interesting sight indeed. To have the opportunity to have those three lovely ladies hands all over me would be something." By the sound of Dai's voice it sounded like he actually shuddered. "The mere thought of it makes me all warm on the inside. I bet that Hikari is a real wild one." That got an irritated twinge from Daisuke. "But you would probably already know that. From personal experience I do believe." Seeing the change in his former human half's demeanor, Dai realize that he found the subject that he could use to his advantage. "I bet she's smooth going down. In more ways that one."

That would be the thing to set Daisuke off as he went after Dai. He tried to make quick work but like with him earlier Dai was managing to avoid the on coming attacks. _"This is pointless. We know how the other fights."_ Almost as if to prove his train of thought he tried to drive the stake into Dai's heart but before it could happened his adversary moved out of harm's way.

With that maneuver being useless the roles were reverse as it was Daisuke who had to avoid an oncoming strike. _"The one who'll gain an advantage is the one who can come up with something that the other wouldn't be expecting."_

The one who would follow that thought would be Daisuke as he pulled out another stake from his jacket and flung it straight at Dai's heart. Despite the incredible speed that was behind the flying projectile it failed to hit its target as Dai caught the piece of wood.

"You must be becoming desperate." inquired the hero's former vampire half as he held the thrown stake in his hand. "Did you actually think you could get me by throwing a stake at my heart?"

"To be honest..." Looking right at him, Daisuke smiled at his darker half. "..No, I didn't."

Confused b the answer the vampire didn't know what to make of it until Dai felt a searing pain in his hand. The source of the pain came form the stake that was thrown at him. Unable to tolerate it any longer he tossed it away but even then there was still a pain going through his hand. "What the hell? Why did you do with that stake?"

"Dai got his answer when Daisuke pulled out a familiar bottle that contained a clear liquid from his jacket. "Ah, the wonders that is holy water. You don't have to use it directly for it to be affective."

"Quite a clever move." admitted Dai who apparently had recovered from the unexpected move. "Unfortunately for you it won't keep you from getting your throat ripped out. With the use of his vampire speed that he had yet to exhibited, Dai covered the distance that was between them and lifted Daisuke off the ground by grabbing the top of his jacket. "But before that happens I plan to have some fun."

With a simple gesture Daisuke was tossed against one of the walls. To make matter worse the place that he hit was the fuse box. As Daisuke crashed into the fuse box it resulted in electrical sparks to go everywhere before he collapsed completely to the ground. Struggling to get back to his hands and knees Daisuke stuck his right arm so that his collapsible sword could come out.

Soon after it was out the sword was quickly dealt with as Dai stomped on it, resulting in it breaking. "Uh, uh, there isn't any need for you to use that little sword of yours." Picking Daisuke up, Dai slammed him against the wall before grabbing the broken piece of the collapsible sword. "Besides, it'll be more useful if it was in my hands."

Instead of struggling Daisuke actually chuckled. "For once we can agree on the same thing." Taking Dai's momentary pause as an opening Daisuke delivered a knee to the gut. He followed it up by grabbing a hold of the hand that Dai was using to hold his broken sword and in one swift move jammed it into the fuse box.

With the broken sword acting like a conductor, the electricity from the fuse box went straight into the body of the vampire. The voltage that went through his body was too much for Dai to handle as the fuse box overloaded and sent him sailing across the room. For what felt like eternity the fallen body of Dai didn't move in the slightest. "That must've been a shocking experience for him." It wasn't until after he said that did Daisuke realize how bad that joke was. "I must be out of it if I actually said such a bad joke."

Focusing back on the matter at hand Daisuke went over to the still motionless body of Dai. Along the way he picked up the broken sword piece that fortunately didn't have any electrical current going through it. When Daisuke reached his defenseless enemy he kneeled over and positioned the sword piece over the vampire's heart. "At last, this can be all over."

With only the slightest bit of hesitation Daisuke brought the sword piece down only for someone grabbing his arm before he could drive the weapon through the unbeaten heart of Dai's. Turning to the owner of the hand that stopped him he was about to attack whoever it was but stopped himself when he saw that the person was Hikari. "Why did you stop me?" Yanking his hand from his girlfriend's grasp Daisuke once again readied himself to stake his former other half. "Let me finish what I set out to do."

Not allowing anything to stop him this time Daisuke was going to finish it when he suddenly felt something pierce the side of his neck. Pulling out whatever it was that hit him he saw that it was a small tranquilizer dart. Looking over to where the dart had came from he saw that the one responsible for hitting him was Ken who had the same dart gun that Daisuke was accustomed in using in his hands. "W-What the-" Daisuke wouldn't finish his question as he finally gave in to the tranquilizer and passed out.

"Do you think that was necessary?" asked Ken as he walked into the scene with Mimi and Miyako not that far behind.

"There really wasn't much of a choice." stated Miyako. "Daisuke was too dead set in killing Dai that it would be impossible to convince him otherwise." Going over to the aforementioned vampire she gave him a more than a light hearted kick to the ribs. When she got nothing more than a slight groan as a response she believed that he wouldn't be getting up anytime soon. Suddenly, in a blink of an eye, she pulled out a miniature dart gun and fired two darts to the chest. "Not that it would be that bad of a thing if the circumstances were different."

"But those circumstances can't be changed." informed Mimi. After her cousin had made sure that Dai wouldn't be waking up anytime soon she came over and with Miyako's assistance began to wrap a thick chain around most of his body. "Remember, if one of them were killed the other would die as well." In no time the chain was securely wrapped around the unconscious vampire he was being moved by Miyako and Ken. "Let's just hope that by the time that we get back with James he'll have everything ready to solve our problem."

Allowing the two to take their bound culprit away, Mimi went over to the other unconscious person who at the moment had his head laying on top of Hikari's lap and having her lightly stroking her hand over her right cheek. "Don't worry; he'll wake up in a few hours. He'll have a major headache but nothing to worry about."

"I know but I can't help but worry." With Mimi's assistance they managed to get him up and started to drag him to the car. "Hopefully he'll understand why we had to do what we had to do." It was apparent that Hikari was concern about the reaction that they would get from Daisuke. "Please don't be upset with us Daisuke."

-/-/-/-/-

"Don't worry; I'm not mad at you guys." To the relief of everyone, Daisuke wasn't angry when he regained consciousness. "I'll admit that I let my emotions cloud my thinking at the time but I'm better now. Of course there are a few exceptions." Daisuke was obviously referring to some of the minor injuries that he sustained in his fight with Dai. "Thankfully you guys stopped me when you did or I wouldn't be here now."

"Now wouldn't that be a shame if that were to happen." exclaimed someone who wasn't so glad to be there. The person was the chained up Dai. "Being honest, if I have know that by me dieing would result in your death I probably would've allowed you to stake me."

"Trust me; the suggestion is still tempting." retorted Daisuke in complete honest. "However, I believe that for the time being it's preferable that you stay out of this." Reaching over to the desk, Daisuke picked up the same miniature dart gun that was used earlier. Aiming it he fired a dart into Dai's chest. Soon the all familiar feeling of the drugs took affect on the vampire.

"Why you son of a bitch." That would be all that Dai would say as he once again passed out.

"With that current nuisance out of the way, let's get back to the matter at hand." Going to the other room they saw that everything was getting prepared for what they needed to do. "How is everything going here?"

"Things are moving smoothly." informed James who was the one in charge of getting the whole thing set up. "In fact, we're putting the final touches to it. We'll have it all done in no time. All we need is the other component."

Understanding what James was talking about, Daisuke went back to the room that he was previously was in. When he came back he was dragging the passed out body of Dai. "Do you think that this'll actually work?" Daisuke was referring to the symbols that were drawn on the floor. "Maybe I should call Serenity and have her come over in case things become physical."

"That shouldn't be necessary. Yin-Yang demons are usually nonviolent beings. As for the summoning spell, it should work. Every step was done to the letter." By James' tone he was confident of what he was saying. "If all goes according to plan this should summon the Yin-Yang demons to this very spot."

"It should?? What could happen if it doesn't do what it's supposed to do?"

"Nothing will happen." That instantly relieved Daisuke. "With the exception of a dimensional rift being created that could consume everything with the area."

The expression that was on Daisuke's face would be a comical one under different circumstances. "Oh, is that all? That's good to hear." With everyone seemingly ready it was time to start the summoning. "Let's get this thing started."

Being the one who knew the most about what they needed to do, James took the lead. Reaching into his pocket he pulled out a piece of paper that had some writing on it. "We call upon those who dwell on the border of where opposing sides meet. We seek your service at this time." Motioning over to Mimi and Miyako they did their part and lit the candles that were stationed around the symbols. "Hear our call and come forth."

Right when those words were spoke the flames on the candles exploded to humungous flames. Next a big swirl of smoke came from the ground and in the middle of the smoke there were two figures. When the smoke finally disappeared the figures became clearly visible.

The first one was male who physically was about their age. Had an average figure with spikey hair that had an unnatural white color to it with one long strand going across his left eye. What he was wearing was a black t-shirt, white pants and black shoes. As for the other person, it was a woman who had a shapely figure and long black hair that went to the middle of her back. The outfit she had on was a sleeveless shirt that was short enough that it exposed her stomach, tight black pants, white shoes that had slightly elevated heels and on each of her arms were black fingerless gloves that went all the way up to her elbows.

"Who dares summon us?" questioned the male figure. Looking around he seemingly was evaluating everyone almost as if to see if they were even worth bothering with.

"Even with the tough guy act Yin." muttered the woman who had accompanied the man now identified as Yin. "Sorry about that. My brother likes to pretend to be tougher than he really is."

"Don't start Yang. I'm not up for that off handed remarks of yours." Not continuing with the small spat that he had going with his sister, Yin turned his attention back to Daisuke and his group. "I ask again, why have you summoned me and my sister?"

"We summoned you in the hopes that you could reverse the spell that you've done." answered James. He pointed over to the unconscious form of Dai the demon siblings understood what the situation was about.

"Ah, apparently this is about that thing that we did for that vampire, Shishio." informed the woman who went under the name of Yang. "What a pain he was to deal with. Even by vampire standards. My brother and I could hardly tolerate him."

"Be as it be, he summoned us to do our specialty and that's what we did." added Yin as if it was a simple thing.

"And we have done it so you could reverse what you did." spoke Daisuke while stepping up to the two demons. "Now are you going to do what we ask or are we going to have a problem?"

A slight tension came over the situation as they all waited to see who would back down first. Somewhat of a surprise it was the demon Yin who would back down. "Fine then, we'll do as you ask." Everyone in the room became at ease when that was said. "However, there are some requirements that must be met before it can be done."

"What requirements are we talking about here?" Miyako asked which it was a legitimate question. "Does it involve some sort of incantation, ritual or something along that line?"

"More like a sacrifice." Yang's statement instantly changed the atmosphere of the situation. Out of all the things that they could've heard that was the least expected. "You see, for someone to have our abilities at their service they must first sacrifice something of value as an exchange."

"Then what the hell did Shishio sacrifice to get you to help him?" Once again a valid question was asked only this time it came from Ken.

"He sacrificed life." That simple answer that Yin gave Daisuke and the others even more to consider about what they were getting themselves into. "For our services he gave up the lives of five of his own people."

"Are you saying that for you to help us we have to give up the lives of people? If so I rather deal with our current problem as is." That revelation from Daisuke came to a surprise to his friends but understanding the reason behind it they had to agree.

"No, death isn't a requirement." responded Yang to the relief of everyone. "It's true that sacrificing life does cover the required guidelines, there are other ways." By the looks of that she was getting the female demon continued. "As long as the sacrifice is of great value then it would be sufficient. So you need to decide what you are willing to give up."

Now what could happen was in the hands of Daisuke and his assembled family. It was up to them to decide what they were willing to give up so that the Yin-Yang demons would help them. "Well, I would be willing to give up being a vampire but that would make this situation pointless."

For the next few minutes they traded suggestions but they would be either dropped or denied by the demon siblings. They were quickly running out of ideas until Mimi came up with a suggestion. When the others heard what it was they immediately opposed to it.

"No. Absolutely not." exclaimed Miyako who wasn't even hiding her dislike to her cousin's idea. "I can't even tell you how many ways your suggestion is."

"Why would you say that?" replied Mimi as if it wasn't that big of a deal. " It sounds like a good idea to me."

"You may think that Mimi." spoke a calming James. "But have you really thought about what you're willing to give up?"

Before she answered, Mimi met the eyes of each of her friends with a determined stare. "Believe me, I have and I'm still willing to do it."

But are you actually willing to surrender your premonition power?" Just saying it caused the thought of it to become even more real than it already was. "That gift of yours has helped us plenty of times. Don't forget it was a premonition from you that alerted us when Dai took over my body. Remember, that power of yours is a gift not a curse."

"Don't worry Daisuke, I haven't forgotten. I've come to terms with those issues a long time ago. I had help in that area." Mimi sent quick but tender look towards James which he returned. "My power is indeed a gift and I wish to use it by giving it up to help you Daisuke." Focusing on no one else but the person that she wanted to do the whole thing for, Mimi stared at him with an unwavering determination. "Please Daisuke, let me do this. It's something I wish to do."

In the end it all came down to what Daisuke's final decision would be. "All right, well do it." The dislike of the whole situation that Daisuke was feeling was clear by the tone that was in his voice. "I may not be completely behind it but it's something that you're dead set on doing and for which I'll be forever thankful for." With a few calming breaths, Daisuke put himself in front of the others. "Let's get his over with before I change my mind."

Going over to where the Yin-Yang demons had been waiting patiently they informed them about what was to be sacrificed and to their somewhat relief and displeasure they deemed it worthy. "Remember, for this to be successful you just do what we say without hesitation. Are we clear?" When Yin got no argument he continued with the instructions. Telling where Daisuke and Mimi to stand the demon siblings were about to start.

"Will this hurt?" questioned a slightly nervous Mimi. She was standing over the unconscious body of Dai with Daisuke on the other side of the vampire. The three of them were in the center of the symbols that were used to summon the Yin-Yang demons in the first place.

"Not really." answered Yang in a confident voice. "There might be some mile discomfort but nothing really serious." By the way that the female half of the demonic duo was explaining it you could trust her. "Now, you just relax and don't worry, you'll be the same person as before this whole thing started."

Making sure that Hikari and the others were a safe distance away the two demons were ready to begin the ritual. "We, the ones who dwell in where opposites meet call upon your power." chanted Yin in an unnatural voice.

Following her brother's example, Yang continued the incantation in the same type of voice. "We seek to make this person who is not two to become one again."

When things seemingly couldn't get any stranger, the eyes of the demons glazed over until they were completely white. To add to the situation, an unusual wind came across the room. The Yin-Yang would continue their chanting only it would be speaking the exact same time. "For exchange we give up this girl's sacrifice. Please grant our plea."

As if responding, the markings on the ground started to glow. Along with the markings a glowing sphere that Daisuke was familiar with started to surround him and Dai. The chanting would soon change into an unknown language and as they continued to chant the sphere continued to glow brighter until it was blinding.

When it appeared that the sphere couldn't get any brighter the sphere burst and when it did only one person emerge as they collapsed to the ground. That person wouldn't be the only one as Mimi started to wobble a bit and would've fell if it wasn't for James rushing over and held her up.

"It is done." informed the Yin-Yang demons at the same time as the clouded look in their eyes vanished. "What you asked for has been done. We now take our leave." Right before the eyes of everyone the two demons shimmered away.

Putting that out of their minds for the moment, the group turned their attention to their own. "How are they?" asked Miyako who asked the question that all of them wanted to answered.

"Well, from what I can figure out I have determined that Mimi is okay." reported James who took it upon himself to check on the health of his girlfriend. "She seemed to have passed out. Not surprising seeing what she had to do." It was apparent to Miyako that James was just as concern about her cousin's well being as she was.

"That's good to hear." With the condition of Mimi being resolved Miyako looked over to the other half of the group. "Let's just hope that we can say the same for our other friend."

The friend that they were referring to was of course the unconscious Daisuke who was being looked over by both Hikari and Ken. While the two of them may have been concern for their friend's well being at the same time they were worried about what could happen next. "You know what to do right?" questioned Hikari who was beside their possible friend.

Ken nodded his head in confirmation. "If he wakes up and it looks as though Dai is in control I take him out with this." He lifted the tranquilizer gun to state his claim. It was then that Ken notice that Hikari was kneeling dangerously close to the prone body that he hoped that his friend Daisuke was in control of. "Do you think that it's wise for you to be that close to him? We don't know yet which person is in the driver's seat."

Believe me, I know the danger." Hikari's voice was calm while at the same time contained an unyielding conviction. "But I want to see with my own eyes if the Daisuke that I care deeply for is still there." She wouldn't have to wait long as the person in question was beginning to come to.

Slowly opening his eyes he stared up towards Hikari. "Hey there good looking. You're such a great sight for these eyes to see."

In her heart Hikari knew who it was but she had to be certain and she kenw how to do that. Leaning over she cautiously pressed her lips against his. The two of them stayed like that until she pulled away. "It's good to see you too…Daisuke."

"Believe me, the pleasure is all mine. That kiss was a good enough reason to come around." His remark got its desired affect as a light blush came across Hikari's face. _"Even after being together for so long I can still cause her to become all flustered. It's kind of flattering in a way."_

Before Daisuke's train of thought could go any further he took notice that Ken still had the tranquilizer gun aimed at him. Relax Ken, it's me." Thankfully that was good enough as Ken lowered the weapon. Getting to his feet Daisuke collected himself as everyone gathered together. _"Hopefully they're prepared to deal with everything that I'm about to tell them."_

-/-/-/-/-

Hours Later…

While it should've been a moment of celebration for putting the literal demon back into its cage, that wouldn't be the case. Sitting all about were Daisuke and his friends with solemn expressions on their faces.

"Are you sure about this?" Ken asked who broke the silence that had come over all of them.

"Trust me, I'm sure." Daisuke responded in a quiet voice. "I may not have actually been there but ever since rejoining with my unwanted other half I've been recalling the things he did while we were apart." By the feelings that were behind his words none of Dai's memories were pleasant ones. "However, something beneficial did come from it. We were able to find one that he wasn't lying before."

"I still can't believe it." spoke Hikari. "Out of all the times that I thought about it not once did I ever think of this as an actually possibility."

"Not only is it a possibility, its realty." stated Miyako. "There's nothing we can do to change it and we have to deal with it."

"Miyako's right." Daisuke informed with absolute seriousness in his voice. "We have to face facts that we now know who the higher ups are."

-/-/-/-/-

"Do you mind explaining what you were doing?" In a secluded room within the Takenaka Corporation building a private meeting was taking place with only the higher ups and a familiar vampire being present.

"There's really nothing to explain." informed the vampire who was none other than Shishio. "I was simply doing what you paid me to do. You told me to create a distraction for Motomiya and his group while you did whatever it is that you were doing. Not once during our conversations did you tell me what kind of distraction that I had to use."

It wasn't hard for Shishio to tell that the higher ups were not pleased by their parent's laid back attitude. "Look on the bright side, everything turned out all right. The distraction did what it was supposed to do and they have no idea what you're planning on doing."

There wasn't a single thing said in that room and the silence remained until the one female higher up spoke. "Be grateful that we still in need of your services or you'd be a pile of dust at this moment." If that was supposed to frighten Shishio it didn't work as he maintained the same standoffish attitude. "Just do what you were brought to do and as promise you'll receive more wealth and power than you could ever imagine."

With an understanding nod of the head Shishio turned around to take his leave. "Don't worry, I'll do my part." The vampire was about to leave but looked back at his partners. "Remember this though. Don't try to screw me over or you'll regret it." That said he left the higher ups to themselves.

"Arrogant little blood sucker." spat the female higher up. "Reminds of a similar person I knew years ago." Slowly some of the other lights turned on. When that happened you could see that the woman was an attractive female with long blonde hair that was tired in a low ponytail and beautiful grayish eyes.

"Calm yourself Katara. Once Shishio has served his purpose he'll be taken cared of like the rest of our other annoyances." said one of the male higher ups, who looked like an old man who was around his mid forties.

Indeed, the female was in fact Katara, the person who trained Daisuke after he became a vampire. "That may be the case Samuel but even you got to admit that you wanted to stake that damn vampire in his dried out heart."

Samuel Bentson, the same person that Daisuke became friends with over two years ago. Even though he tried to hide it, a faint trace of a grin could be seen. "Be that as it may now isn't the time to do such a thing. Isn't that right Byron Satori?"

In a chair that was stationed behind the two others was a man that appeared to be in his mid thirties. He had dirty blonde hair and blue eyes. "That's correct Samuel." answered Byron in a voice that lacked any form of emotion. "Soon all of our preparations will become reality and all those who stand against us will be dealt with in due time."

-/-/-/-/-

"So, this is what you've been doing all this time." Sitting in his living room with all the lights off was Daisuke. What he was doing was watching a video recording of when he and Hikari went on a group date with the others to the beach. Walking over to him, Hikari sat down beside Daisuke. "Do you regret doing what you did?"

Already knowing what his girlfriend was talking about Daisuke shrugged his shoulder. "In a way I do. To be able to go out in the sun and not because I was wearing some necklace but because I was an actual living, breathing human being was something that I greatly appreciated." Peering back to the TV he smiled as it was currently showing of him sharing a laugh with Hikari as she lend against his back.

"I'll always treasure the second chance that I was given. Having the opportunity to go through life as every other person, to go on dates with my girlfriend during the day and that includes going to the beach, which I enjoyed since it allowed me the chance to see you in a bathing suit."

For that remark Daisuke received a light smack to the back of the head by Hikari. "Keep talking like that and you'll never have another chance to see me in something like that again, if you catch my drift." Even though she was trying to be serious with her warning, Hikari couldn't hide the fact that she was amused by the situation.

The couple shared a hearty laugh for a while until they calmed down. "It's still hard for me to believe." spoke Daisuke who no longer had the happy go lucky look on his face. "Two of the people that I trusted completely are two of the three people who have made our lives hell all this time."

Much like her boyfriend, Hikari became serious. "I know what you mean. I may not known Katara but I knew Samuel and it still blows my mind that he is one of the masterminds that has been going against us for so long. Have you told Serenity about any of this?"

"No I haven't. I'll tell her everything tomorrow." Letting out a haggard breath, Daisuke continued. "There's no telling how she'll react when she finds out about this. Even if she doesn't consider it, Katara is technically her other. What she does with this discovery is anyone's guess."

"And what does that say about us? What do we do with the knowledge that we've acquired?"

"Continue with our lives like we always have." answered Daisuke calmly. "We'll have to deal with them in the not so distant future. For now though we got other things to worry about. One of them is dealing with that bastard, Shishio. With his apparent association with the Takenaka Corporation he's an even greater threat then by himself."

In a surprising move, Hikari draped her arms around Daiuske and laid her head on his shoulder. "We'll deal with him and everyone else that comes against us. The reason isn't because we're the good guys and they're the bad buys. It's because unlike them we fight for more than just for ourselves. We fight for all those who wish to live peacefully and so that they don't have to bare the pain and hardships that could befall them."

Wanting to respond to Hikari's strong words Daisuke placed a hand tenderly on top of hers. "Thank you Hikari. What you said is true. We fight on for those who are unable to fight and that perhaps someday battles such as these won't be necessary."

"That's the best that we can do." With some reluctance, Hikari removed her arms from him and started for the door. She was about to leave but stopped to say one last thing. "We can only hope for a better and brighter future for all those who wish for it."

With that she left, leaving Daisuke with his thoughts. Getting to his feet he headed for his room. When he got there he opened the top dresser and pulled something out. In Daisuke's palm was a small black box. Opening the box it was revealed that inside was a ring with a diamond on it. _"We can only look towards a better and brighter future."_ With that thought, Daisuke closed the lid to the box.

* * *

That was a shocker wasn't it? Dai has been taken cared of and things are seemingly return to 'normal' for the heroes. Also, the identity of the higher ups have finally been revealed and I bet that some of you were surprise by who they were. As for that the little part at the end of the chapter, I'll keep that information to myself until later on. 

Well, with this story to my series the next one will soon follow it. The name of it will be 'Battles Before The War'. Why that story has a title like that will be explain when the first chapter is put on which will be sometime this week. Until then, see ya and don't forget to leave a review if you don't mind.


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